Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.  Enjoy!!**

 

Holly and Mrs. Burris at Kindergarten Graduation, Osan AB, Korea, June 2010

 

Oh, how Mrs. Burris is loved and revered in our home!!!  Still to this day, all of Holly's (and Sarah's) teachers have to jump the hurdle that she set.  Thank you, Heather, for loving my babies and pouring yourself into them.  

Photo Friday

~ Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.  Enjoy! ~

 

 

Trick or Treating with Colesie, Osan, South Korea, October 2009

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.  Enjoy!!!**

 

View of the East Sea from Naksan Temple, Sokcho, South Korea, November 2010

 

Photo Friday

** Every Friday I will post a picture from our life.  Enjoy!!**

At the waterfall, Patara Elephant Farm, Chiang Mai, Thailand, March 2011



Photo Friday

Every Friday, I will post a photo from our life.  Enjoy!

Feeding the birds at Everland, South Korea, November 2009

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.  Enjoy!**

Characworld, Jeju-si, South Korea, June 2011

Last year, as soon as the kids were out of school, we headed for Jeju Island with our close friends the Milks.  It rained....  but we were able to explore some of the more interesting points of the island.   Thus we found Characworld, a museum dedicated to all things character/animated. 

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **

Lotus Lantern Festival, Seoul, Korea, May 2010

Taking advantage of everything Korea had to offer while we were there, we participated in the Lotus Lantern Festival that celebrated Buddha's birthday!  It was a wonderful time, and one that we repeated in 2011.  Take a look at all the pictures here and the blog post here. 

For Buddhists around the world, the celebration of Buddha's birthday is considered the holiest of days.   The parade is basically neighborhoods, schools, and temples from all over dressing up in their very best and bringing lanterns to light up the temple.  The ladies above are dressed in a traditional hanbok, with the colors coordinated to signify the neighborhood/school/temple they are representing.  The parade is a sight to see and the atmosphere buzzes with positive energy and joy.   And we were lucky enough to have experienced it...   

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **

 

The girls at Everland, South Korea, April 2010

Korea is lovingly referred to as the land of the not quite right.  Everland is the largest theme park in South Korea and, conveniently for us, it was about an hour's drive from us. They have a little bit of everything that you need/want in a theme park - zoo, roller coasters, kid rides, and the best caramel popcorn!  Of course, they also had things that would make you turn your head and go "huh? Lost in translation..." 

The girls were out for Spring Break, so we went Everland for the day. From the blog:  "It was a beautiful day and the park wasn't that crowded, which was really nice. The tulips and other spring flowers are starting to pop up and most of the flowering trees were in bloom. I discovered they had a times guide in English printed up, so we were able to hit a few shows. The girls really enjoyed the seal show and they have a new festival square show complete with some magic tricks. Mostly we just walked around, enjoyed the flowers, and played until the sun went down."

Looking back now, it was a really nice day... as summed up by the cheeky expression they gave me on the way out of the park (the picture above) :)

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **

 



Batting Cages, Insadong, Korea, April 2010

This was such a great night...  so great that I blogged about it.  Read it here and part 2 is here.  

The batting cages were soooo much fun!  As expected, Ronnie was hitting really well.  But Koreans don't play baseball like we do.  The entire batting cage came to a standstill as Ronnie finished his round.  Guess it was his 5 minutes of fame.  

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **

Christmas Dinner with the Stockmans, Korea, Christmas 2009

Ain't no party like a Princess party - woot woot!!!  We had dinner with our good friends, the Stockmans.  While we were cleaning the dishes up, the dress-up parade started.  So much fun!!!!

Photo Friday

** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **

Sarah enjoying the snow, Osan, Korea, January 2010

We had record snowfall that day.  From the Korea Times, “The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said 25.8 centimeters of snow had fallen in Seoul, breaking the previous record of 25.6 centimeters set on Jan. 28, 1969. Weathermen said that the snowfall was the largest amount recorded in the capital since data were first collected in 1937.”  And we had a blast playing in it!!!

Annyong Kyesayo

It's finally here...  the day we came back to America.  I can't believe that it was already time to go...  I feel that I had more to do at Osan and in Korea.  Our last month has been a blur. 

Holly had her first day of school

and her last day of school. 

We shared Chuseok with our neighbors.  They sent us the plate on the left, I sent back the plate on the right. My girls got an enthusiastic two thumbs up for their bow of gratitude. 

We had to go to Everland one more time, and were joined there by some pretty awesome friends. 

 

We had to squeeze more shopping in.  I love Lotte Mart... and am going to miss the uber-convenient kids play area. 

We spent time with friends who feel more like family and who will always have a place in our heart.  One more dinner, another cup of coffee, quick talks at the BX, and one more playdate. 

 And we finally had to say "See you Soon and send us your address" to Dan and Allison Patak rather than "See you when you get to town" *sniff*

To say that we are going to miss Korea is an understatement.  I feel this way about Texas and North Carolina....  They are my home, a place where we made a life and made sweet memories with our children.  I am gong to miss this beautiful country and her beautiful strong people.  I am going to miss my sweet neighbors who I can't communicate with, but we somehow get by.  I am going to miss going to the commissary and BX and running into seemingly every person I know.  I am going to miss the wonderful ladies of the 25th FS (and of the 36th, and of the base...), the sounds of jets flying overhead, the exercises that never seem to end and always come at a bad time, and the sense of camaraderie and community that embodies Osan.

And we left all this behind in search of a new adventure. 

We landed back in the good ol' US of A on Tuesday morning, after traveling some hours across the pond.  Our flight was pretty uneventful, the girls did wonderfully, we got some good sleep on the plane, and got situated quickly on the other end.  We found out that our household goods and our quick ship are here, so we will be working on getting the house set up the next few weeks. 

Crossing the Line

It's been two years....  October 5th marks the day we left the US in 2009 on our way to this amazing assignment.  As I draw nearer to the end of our time here, I am overwhelmed by my feelings for the ROK and her people.  To mark the anniversary or our time here, Ronnie and I made a trip to the DMZ, Panmunjom, and the JSA.  I'm going to let the pictures tell the story on this post.

One foot in the South and the other in the North

Click on the Slideshow to see our pics.

Lessons Learned: Five Pounds....

The other day, I was commiserating with a friend about the five pounds I've gained while being in Korea.  She concurred and said that she thought she put on her extra weight from the yummy Thai food alone.  It got me to thinking....  was the five pounds worth it? 

I've gained five pounds by trying new and interesting foods:  we've sampled our way through Thailand and China, by figuring out which banchan we like best at the Korean restaraunts, and discovering the international fare available in the 'ville.

I've gained five pounds by meeting wonderful friends and reconnecting with others. 
I've gained five pounds by sharing meals and treats with wonderful friends at fini-flights, girls night outs, and numerous "coffees."

I've gained five pounds by learning to enjoy a culture so completely different from my own. 

I've gained five pounds by running in races far from a country that is my own, and being cheered on by people who don't look a thing like me but who chant "USA" while I pass them. 


As my time in Korea winds down to a close, I really hope that I can shed the pounds I've gained physically but I know that the other five pounds I've gained in lessons learned while here will always be with me. 

Leaving the Jet Plane

Well, it's over.  My husband will no longer have a mistress, there will no longer be the "other" woman in his life, and all that jazz.  With our next assignment being a non-flying job, and this being his second time in the venerable A-10, we had to say our final goodbye to the Hawg.

But not before Ronnie took her for one last ride - he had to put her up wet you know....

 

De-hoarding

We already have our cabinets in order for the move.  I am pretty sure we are going to be cutting it close on what we'll be down to come PCS-day.  I haven't done any large shopping since the beginning of summer and have only been replenishing the basics like bread, cereal, milk, and beer. 

But in my quest to mealplan my way to October 8th and an empty pantry, I found myself giggling while taking inventory.  Let's see if you giggle too:

I have 3 cans of 28 oz pumpkin.  This is due to the great pumpkin shortage of '09 where even Mrs. Smiths couldn't get pumpkin.  I bought some in the states to bring with me to Osan so I could have some pumpkin, and then must have bought some more when the commissary, and then more last year because obviously I forgot I had it in the pantry.  Needless to say, there will be more baking. 

I have 2 cans of artichoke hearts.  Again, there was a great artichoke shortage when I got here and the ladies had been without for sometime.  I even remember the email that came out when there was some in the commissary.  I guess I have been keeping some on hand, just in case, because I'm the only one who eats artichokes in the house. 

Lastly, I have a mixed case of specialty beers.  There is always a shortage of good beer at the Shoppette.  So much so that we have a "Good Beer Alert" that goes out when they actually have some good stuff in.  It's either a phone call that says "the shoppette has Shocktop in" or an email that says "Blue Moon - hurry up!"   I will be enjoying my Rogue ale, Octoberfest, Shocktop, and lone Blue Moon with a smile and a tip of the hat to the Good Beer Network. 

I'm sure that's the tip of the iceberg in my house, but I thought it was funny...  and I just know the ex-Osaners out there are laughing right along with me. 

And Now For Something Completely Different

Adding it all up, I've moved twelve times in my lifetime that I've had some say in and six of those moves have been with the Air Force.  All in all, we are moving specialists...  I know exactly what to go through and get rid of, keep with me until the end, and I can plan our food intake/grocery shopping so there's not much to move. 

I would have to say that I'm a professional by now and know what to expect when packing day gets here.  But the Koreans, well they just do things their own special way.  So our lessons learned for this week are about moving:

Adventures in packing, note 1: we put my shoes in the 6 drawer dresser rather than having to box them up. Well....... we needed a box anyway.  And no, I do not have a shoe problem.  I have significantly less pairs than we counted when I moved to college (my parents are shocked right about now). 

Adventures in packing, note 2: it's best to get the kids involved. It makes them feel like they are part of the move. We found a note attached to one of the boxes: 

No, Sarah wasn't helping the packer, we think they just took a piece of paper out of their notebooks, but it's funny right.  We did have them help us by packing their own toys into two piles:  one that would stay with us and one to go in our quick ship.  They did great, and picked a lot of books to send. 

Adventures in packing, note 3: You can never be too specific when labeling boxes. It makes it much easier on the other end to locate your valuables.  Unfortunately, a friend noted that she too had a box labeled similarly, and it disappeared in her move. 

Adventures in packing, note 4:  When the packer comes in and goes "Oooooo" that may or may not be a good thing.  I noted that we had 10,000 lbs to move...  I guess they didn't believe me.  We started out with 3 packers, who put a pretty good dent on the place before lunch.  After lunch, two more packers came to help out.  When I went down at 3 pm to fetch Holly from the bus, three more were walking in the door. 

Adventures in packing, note 5:  Pack a go-bag before the packers start.  so with all the packers in the house, they were finished packing, had our household goods secured in 10 crates and were home by supper time.  I couldn't believe it walking into my house.  Our apartment came furnished, but it was 6:30 and there was no way we could get the beds up.  Hastily, I threw some items into an overnight bag and we headed to the hotel on base for the night.  Great decision as we slept in a little, lounged around after getting Holly off to school, and then got back in plenty of time to get the house cleaned up and set up for the night. 

So that's that - our stuff is on it's way to the Pacific NW and we only have a car left to get on a boat. 

How to Survive a TDY 101: Week 4

There is some unwritten rule somewhere that says that things will break, fall apart, or just plain stop when the guys are gone.  I don't know who said it needed to be that way, but it was that way for my mom and is now that way for me.  Case in point, the windows in my car will no longer roll up or down, unless the door is open at an exact 47 degree angle.  Really, I'm just trying to make light of this next part, because what has broken or fallen apart this time is difficult to cope with.  Last Friday, I got a phone call from Shirley, my mother in law, saying Robbie (Ronnie's brother) isn't doing well and she needed to talk with me.

Before I go forward, let me back up.  Robbie was diagnosed with bladder cancer in March '09; it was treated and the prognosis was hopeful. Then we found out it had metastasized to his bone and had large tumors on his neck in Sept '09.  This happened while we were in the middle of our move to Korea.  I sent Ronnie back home immediately while I finished up the move myself.  The surgery to remove the tumor went okay but the doctors were still hopeful about his condition.  In Dec 09, we found out that the tumor had regrown (refer to Go Daddy Go post) and we have been treating ever since.  Back in May, he woke up and was paralyzed from the waist down. The admitted him to the hospital and have been doing chemo ever since. 

I tracked Ronnie down in Alaska, with the help of Allison, and gave him the message to call his parents.  What Shirley was calling to tell us is Robbie has made the decision to stop treatment. He found out that he has blood clots in his legs and lungs and his liver is starting to fail. On top of that, the tumor is not shrinking and may even be growing.  The docs are giving him 1 - 3 months to live. 
I gathered all my strength, packed my bags and kids, and hopped home on Tuesday.  After having spent 40 hours on the road, the girls and I finally landed in Florida on Wednesday morning.  We will be in Florida for the next few weeks visiting with Robbie and other friends and family. 

But this needs to be said.  For all the things the military can do and have done wrong, the one thing they get right time and time again is emergency leave.  We needed it back in 2001 when Ronnie's Aunt Sarah passed away, and again in December 09 when the relapse happened.  Here we are using it again and the process could not be smoother.  The professionalism and what else can I do to help is exactly what we need in this process and I can't thank the Draggins, Lady Draggins, and our military family enough. 

I also learned a big lesson this week - no matter how much I hate a subject, it is possible to prepare for a final exam, take said final the night before you fly internationally, and manage to get a 100 on the test.  Guess those old school skills are still in this brain after all. 

The next few weeks will be posts about Florida and what all we're going to do while here and making the best of our time with Robbie and the family. 

Love to all!  

Chris

How to Survive a TDY 101: Week 3

Usually around Week 3, we have settled into the routine of not having daddy around, and this TDY was no exception.  This week brought to you by:

1.  Cheer Camp - back in the spring I procrastinated long enough that I didn't get Holly signed up for Cheerleading season.   It's no secret that I am not a fan of cheerleading, though I do like the athleticism that can accompany it (think the tumblers and flyers).  It's the clapping and drone-like chants that grate on my nerves.  But I sucked it up for my girls -- the things parents do sometimes....  But I digress.    My sweet friend Kristen taught the cheer camp this summer at the Youth Center and she said Sarah could tag along too (Sarah wasn't old enough to officially sign up).  So all week, off we went to cheer camp.  While I'm still not a fan of cheering, I did like that my girls enjoyed the camp.  They got to learn a small dance as well as the chants and even learned some of the jumps.  

2. More ways to not use your kitchen - The ladies met for supper club again this week.  I think I could get used to this.  This time we went to the USO for their monthly "Dine for a Dime" dinner.  To help out, I brought a lasagna with me (okay so I had to cook a little, but I didn't have to do the dishes).  We enjoyed a hot meal, great company, and an even better setting.  I'm thinking I will have to add this event to our frequently dined locations. 

3.  Boot Camp - The girls aren't the only ones going to camp this summer.  I am going to a mommy and me bootcamp with Sarah a few days a week.  It works out nicely, the kids play while the mommies have gym class.  Since I've been working out, my little Sarah likes to get involved.  I have her count out reps for me, jump rope, or see how much my barbells weigh.  Every so often, she'll join me in exercising.  Here she is showing me how to do a dip properly.  I'm glad she's enjoying it! 

4.  No Parents Allowed - On Friday, I took advantage of the Give Parents a Break night offered by the Youth Center/CDC, though the girls and I call it No Parents Allowed night.  The girls went and played for a few hours while I met up with some of the ladies for Thai food.  After dinner, my friend Joy and I went to Chili's to have a well-earned margarita with Jenn and Mel. 

How To Survive a TDY 101: Week 2

This week has been a mixture of ups and downs.  The kids are going through the daddy isn't home - ACK!!!  stage.  Meaning that we're whiny and sensitive.  But we are pressing on to keep them occupied.  Here's the lowdown on how we did:

1.  Red White and Boom - Monday was the 4th of July and the base went all out for us.  First we took advantage of a trip through the A&FRC and checked out one of the Korean Spas (ie. waterpark).  The girls and I splashed around all day, getting back in time to clean up and head to Liberty Fest.  There were a lot of great performances this year (read: no Korean bands playing Freebird) and the fireworks were fantastic! 

2.  No Cooking for you!  I just can't seem to get motivated to make full dinners while Ronnie is gone.  I think I've cooked maybe three times since he's left, and I always have more than enough leftovers to feed us for a few days.  That being said, the best way to enjoy a meal is with friends.  I invited the ladies over for a taco night. We talked and ate while the kiddos played.  After dinner, I got the Wii going for the kids and we played Mario Cart and Guitar Hero.  So much fun! 

3.  Okay, Baking is exempted from that rule.  So, I get this email from Ronnie saying he ripped his shoes while playing basketball and didn't have a pair of running shoes.  We were asked to send him his spare pair, since the spare pair I sent was the wrong pair.  Great excuse to pack the box with extras.  The girls decided to make lemon cookies and oatmeal chocolate chip cookies for daddy.  We sent them off and are anxiously awaiting their arrival. 

4.  Getting Cultured - I had found out that the Seoul Art Center was having a kid-friendly opera.  Unfortunately, they were sold out.  So what to do...   Well, at the same time, I also found that there was a Disney exhibit in town "Dreams Come True: The Art of Disney's Classic Fairy Tales".  We switched gears and went to check it out with some friends in tow.  And what a treat it was!  The exhibit focused on animation, how the movie was made, the equipment and technology they used.  We walked through time with Walt Disney and were treated to the shorts as well as snippets of the movies.  We saw the making of Snow White all the way through Tangled.  It was wonderful to share some of the magic behind the movies with the girls.  Highly recommend this if it comes to a museum near you!

Afterwards, I had shared my piece of information about a Johnny Rockets in Seoul with Kim and Carrie.  Their immediate reaction was is it a real Johnny Rockets or not?  See, Korean companies tend to buy American franchises to Korea, but the bulk of the menu items aren't that franchise at all.  For example, a stuffed potato does not involve a sweet potato or whipped cream.  I assured them that my tried-and-true expat bloggers have reviewed Johnny Rockets and declared that they deliver the goods. We all agreed that would be the perfect place for dinner.  And that it was!  The girls and I enjoyed fresh onion rings, burgers and a shake.  I even got a Vanilla-Diet Coke and it was Oh-so-tasty! 

We've had a fantastic week with some wonderful friends!   I hope we have more of these to come this summer!