Well hello friends and family,
I hope this morning (for most of you) is going great for you. I know this evening was a productive one for me. I realize I have not blogged in awhile and wanted to check in and let you all know I am doing well.
VBS is coming along nicely. We have our last big meeting on Thursday and then I am holding our last group meeting for the pre-k team on Friday! It seems that I have an awesome and motivated group that I am working with so that always helps a leader out. I am a little concerned because the nursery leaders fell through on their background checks so as of now we don't have anyone in the nursery and well I can't volunteer if we don't have nursery teachers. However, I am confident in our VBS Director that she will get it sorted out.
School is going well. Another class down and another one has started. It is Monday night here and I have 3 out of my 5 assignments completed that need to be done for the week. The last 2 I might night a little help on from Collin. I am trying to get as far ahead as possible for 2 reasons. The first is because I don't want to have to deal with too much during VBS week and second is because duty calls the husband away for a portion of August.
Speaking of August, it is going to be a bit of a different month for me. The volunteer work for me is going to be going down considerably. Not only will Collin be gone off and on but our nanny will be on vacation the entire month. I think I am seeing crazy late nights for me in order to keep up with homework and housework.
The church volunteer work is going pretty smooth also. The baseball game is less then a month away and the Everland trip is less than 2 months away. I didn't make church last Sunday because Audrey decided that waking up at 1230am and not going back to bed until 4am would be so much more fun then sleep. Anyway, Collin said that not too many people signed up for the baseball game and so this Sunday we are going to wear our Doosan Bears jersey's and try to get moral up! This Sunday is our last Sunday for the baseball game sign ups. Although I must say they did only give us 2 weeks to get this all taken care of.
As most of you have seen this past weekend ended up being a terrific one. It started on Thursday when we found out that my stepson Mike and his wife are expecting a baby. She is very early on and so the wait to find out if it is a boy or girl is going to drive me crazy. This is grand baby 4 for me. (step grand baby but all the same). Friday night I got to hang out with 3 of the most wonderful men in my Korean life. My husband being the number 1 and then 2 of his friends, which by default have become great friends to me as well. We hung out in the house and had a great time. One of the best in awhile. Friday afternoon I received an invite to go hang out with a group of ladies on Saturday night. No husbands, no kids, just the ladies. Anyone who knows me, knows that hanging out with 9 ladies while only knowing 1 of them is a big decision for me, but I did it and it was an amazing time! I think it helped that it was also a cross the street from my house so I guess psychologically I felt like I was basically home if I felt too uncomfortable. Saturday morning my daughter also had her first modeling shoot. We don't plan on making it an ongoing thing but it was fun and I think it could be fun every once in awhile. It was more of a big play date for her as there were 4 other little girls between the ages of 2-3. Audrey was the youngest but she did fantastic in her 3 hours. They supplied food and drink and snacks and I got to meet some other parents as well. All and all it was a great experience and the weekend was just fabulous. Besides the fact that I didn't make church on Sunday I got some much needed sleep after such a fun weekend.
It is now after midnight and my brain is winding down. I was thinking about picking up the house before bed, but instead I think I will sit in my favorite spot. Play a couple games on the computer and then once my brain is completely done, fall fast asleep.
Have a wonderful day everyone!
Tuesday, July 15, 2014
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
All I wanted was to blog
Well that seems like the story of the past few days. So many times I wanted to blog about things but school just kept interrupting. After last night I was beyond caught up! I had all my assignments done and turned in before the due date and I only had 2 left and neither of them were due until the weekend. HA! I ended up writing a 3 page paper tonight on a personal experience that was significant in my life. I wrote that paper about me being overweight and in Korean! I actually found it fun to write as I even giggled while re reading it! I titled it "The Call Me Fat!" Even though I am exhausted and only have 1 more assignment for this week to complete I will probably go ahead and finish it tomorrow as I HAVE to dive into my manual on being the Pre K Director VBS!
However now I must shed some light on my amazing day! I don't know why it was so amazing, I woke up to the second day of rain which has positives and negatives. The positive is that it cools off my house and I can save on my electric bill and that it helps move out the yellow dust. The negative is we can't really go outside to play and well it's rain. Most of you know that my DIL (daughter in law) is here and so we all sat around and talked for a bit as I got Audrey functioning for the morning. Minda showed up and I was out the door by 0910 this morning. I was dragging this morning and starving so I figured B. King and Starbucks was first on my to do list after I called my USO boss to let her know I might be a little late. (Volunteer work, I am allowed to be late) As I got my Venti Carmel Ribbon Crunch Frap nothing else seemed to matter not even the rain. Those things just seemed to make the worst days better, but then again who wouldn't love a Venti Caramel Ribbon Crunch with whipped cream, because if your going to be that bad you might as well go all the way! After getting my drink and running back through the rain and getting in my car it happened. Something so frustrating that even my Ribbon Crunch couldn't hold my smile. I turned the key and the car was dead! I frantically started texting Collin who isn't even in the Country, and my boss to let her know I was really going to be late. I then closed my eyes and asked God why he had to test my patients this morning. Just then I looked down and saw that I was between park and reverse.... It is fact that your car won't start when out of gears. I quickly text everyone back and laughed as I realized I passed my first test of the day with flying colors. I didn't lose my cool when I thought I would have to walk or pay for a taxi to go to work and miss my B. King. Maybe I was able to keep my cool because of the Ribbon Crunch ;) Anyway I got my breakfast and headed into work.
Even with the car incident I couldn't stop smiling now. I had a spring in my step and I didn't know why but I sure was going with it. The USO wasn't bad today we talked about upcoming tasks I was taking on due to the boss leaving. We shared stories about our weekend and laughed at my panic that I had with the car!
I had to leave the USO early because I had a dr. appointment to go to. It was THE MOST PLEASANT appointment and smoothest appointment ever since I have been in Korea! They called me back early they were quick about getting everything done and I only waited about 2 minutes for the doctor to come in. I got all the answers I wanted and more! I am getting referred out to Korean dr and I didn't think that our insurance would cover it due to so many negative stories but my doctor is 98% sure that they will cover what I need if not more! The doctor even inquired about my birth story and when I gave her the short version she insisted on hearing the full thing. We might as well have been sipping coffee by the beach! After the appointment I needed to run my referral to down to the Tricare referral office, but they were already out to their hour and a half lunch so I choose to go to the gym instead!
The gym was awful, in the fact that I just felt like I really struggled today. I found that I am ready to move up in 2 areas but I really struggled today. However I didn't give up. I had the best trainer in the world and I hope to cross paths again before our military career ends and so I have to look amazing the next time I see her. I was going to call it quits after the weights because I have the stability ball at home and I have been doing a lot of the abs, legs, toning type of stuff at home. But again I found that spring in my step and went for it. I felt like I was going to drop by the end of today but I am so proud of myself for going beyond my expectations and not giving up. After all it would have been easy too with no one watching me. After the gym I returned to tricare.
Ummmm again another amazing experience. I walked into the office and the lady greeted me with a smile and said, "Good afternoon! What can I do for you today ma'am." I told her I needed to turn in the paper and I was ready to turn around and leave. I expected the normal of ok I will take it, thank you, have a good day. But instead I got, "Hold on one moment please." She walked away and returned. She wanted to make sure I didn't leave without it getting placed on the proper desk. I said, "Thank you, you are awesome!" She literally stopped for probably 5 seconds and just smiled really big at me and said, "Sometimes we really need to hear that, so thank you." I again was going to walk away when she stopped me and made sure that I not only had her office number but the Korean doctors number so I could call if no one reached me by Monday to set up an appointment. She gave me a shuttle schedule and said if I had any problems or questions to call her directly and she made sure to write her name on the back of the card, as I was walking away again she told me to have a great day and that I made her day today. What a wake up call. We all complain about how awful our health care is here in Korea, or anywhere in general, but we should all take the time to tell someone that we appreciate what they are doing. One sentence that I said to that lady changed her day! I changed someones day today and made them smile! What did you do?
The rest of my day was great with Audrey, I made her a potty sticker board, and since making it we have been able to place our first sticker on it. It is nothing fancy but she smiled when I she picked out her first sticker!
I have no reason as to why my day was so perfect but it was.... and now I am going to close my eyes and end it on a perfect note! (Ok so I will clean up my kitchen and living room first). Good night to all going to bed and good morning to all those who are starting there day! Smile and tell someone they are awesome today.... It makes a difference!
So I am not miss crafty but she enjoys the concept!
However now I must shed some light on my amazing day! I don't know why it was so amazing, I woke up to the second day of rain which has positives and negatives. The positive is that it cools off my house and I can save on my electric bill and that it helps move out the yellow dust. The negative is we can't really go outside to play and well it's rain. Most of you know that my DIL (daughter in law) is here and so we all sat around and talked for a bit as I got Audrey functioning for the morning. Minda showed up and I was out the door by 0910 this morning. I was dragging this morning and starving so I figured B. King and Starbucks was first on my to do list after I called my USO boss to let her know I might be a little late. (Volunteer work, I am allowed to be late) As I got my Venti Carmel Ribbon Crunch Frap nothing else seemed to matter not even the rain. Those things just seemed to make the worst days better, but then again who wouldn't love a Venti Caramel Ribbon Crunch with whipped cream, because if your going to be that bad you might as well go all the way! After getting my drink and running back through the rain and getting in my car it happened. Something so frustrating that even my Ribbon Crunch couldn't hold my smile. I turned the key and the car was dead! I frantically started texting Collin who isn't even in the Country, and my boss to let her know I was really going to be late. I then closed my eyes and asked God why he had to test my patients this morning. Just then I looked down and saw that I was between park and reverse.... It is fact that your car won't start when out of gears. I quickly text everyone back and laughed as I realized I passed my first test of the day with flying colors. I didn't lose my cool when I thought I would have to walk or pay for a taxi to go to work and miss my B. King. Maybe I was able to keep my cool because of the Ribbon Crunch ;) Anyway I got my breakfast and headed into work.
Even with the car incident I couldn't stop smiling now. I had a spring in my step and I didn't know why but I sure was going with it. The USO wasn't bad today we talked about upcoming tasks I was taking on due to the boss leaving. We shared stories about our weekend and laughed at my panic that I had with the car!
I had to leave the USO early because I had a dr. appointment to go to. It was THE MOST PLEASANT appointment and smoothest appointment ever since I have been in Korea! They called me back early they were quick about getting everything done and I only waited about 2 minutes for the doctor to come in. I got all the answers I wanted and more! I am getting referred out to Korean dr and I didn't think that our insurance would cover it due to so many negative stories but my doctor is 98% sure that they will cover what I need if not more! The doctor even inquired about my birth story and when I gave her the short version she insisted on hearing the full thing. We might as well have been sipping coffee by the beach! After the appointment I needed to run my referral to down to the Tricare referral office, but they were already out to their hour and a half lunch so I choose to go to the gym instead!
The gym was awful, in the fact that I just felt like I really struggled today. I found that I am ready to move up in 2 areas but I really struggled today. However I didn't give up. I had the best trainer in the world and I hope to cross paths again before our military career ends and so I have to look amazing the next time I see her. I was going to call it quits after the weights because I have the stability ball at home and I have been doing a lot of the abs, legs, toning type of stuff at home. But again I found that spring in my step and went for it. I felt like I was going to drop by the end of today but I am so proud of myself for going beyond my expectations and not giving up. After all it would have been easy too with no one watching me. After the gym I returned to tricare.
Ummmm again another amazing experience. I walked into the office and the lady greeted me with a smile and said, "Good afternoon! What can I do for you today ma'am." I told her I needed to turn in the paper and I was ready to turn around and leave. I expected the normal of ok I will take it, thank you, have a good day. But instead I got, "Hold on one moment please." She walked away and returned. She wanted to make sure I didn't leave without it getting placed on the proper desk. I said, "Thank you, you are awesome!" She literally stopped for probably 5 seconds and just smiled really big at me and said, "Sometimes we really need to hear that, so thank you." I again was going to walk away when she stopped me and made sure that I not only had her office number but the Korean doctors number so I could call if no one reached me by Monday to set up an appointment. She gave me a shuttle schedule and said if I had any problems or questions to call her directly and she made sure to write her name on the back of the card, as I was walking away again she told me to have a great day and that I made her day today. What a wake up call. We all complain about how awful our health care is here in Korea, or anywhere in general, but we should all take the time to tell someone that we appreciate what they are doing. One sentence that I said to that lady changed her day! I changed someones day today and made them smile! What did you do?
The rest of my day was great with Audrey, I made her a potty sticker board, and since making it we have been able to place our first sticker on it. It is nothing fancy but she smiled when I she picked out her first sticker!
I have no reason as to why my day was so perfect but it was.... and now I am going to close my eyes and end it on a perfect note! (Ok so I will clean up my kitchen and living room first). Good night to all going to bed and good morning to all those who are starting there day! Smile and tell someone they are awesome today.... It makes a difference!
Saturday, May 24, 2014
An exhausting and crazy weekend!
Good morning! To most of my readers anyway. I hope you are all doing well! I am in my favorite spot.... yes you guessed it on my balcony with the windows open listening to the busy traffic of the city below. Tonight though I have a whole different view. I am looking the I'Park mall straight on, seeing a much broader view of the city and high rises and on a clear day/evening I can see the 63 building, which glows when the sun goes down. It's really weird how a shift in view can change the way life feels in general. I knew by looking out the window before that I was living in a city but now I can see the bridge traffic of two bridges, a school playground, a passenger train and so many more high rises that it really feels like the city now. I feel like I am surrounded in it so much more than I was before moving to this apartment. It is exciting.
As most of you know, and if you couldn't tell from the above, the family moved this weekend. We we were living on the 10th floor but we have moved down to the 9th. My elevator friend, yes I have an elevator friend, laughed at me when I told her we were moving to the 9th floor. She couldn't believe we were moving down. "Most people move up, " She said while shaking her head in disbelief. And it is true. If your going to move in a high rise you certainly don't move down, well unless your crazy Americans like us!
The move went relatively smooth except for a few hiccups but what move doesn't have though. However ours was a little weird. Friday Collin had a group of guys lined up to come over and help him move and only 1 work related friend showed up and that was Tom! Being his best friend however counts as a friend and not a work relation so forget I even said that. There was another soldier who came but Collin knows him as a friend and doesn't work anywhere with him. The last person who showed was his son Mike! Anyway a friend on mine headed off to a 31 party that another friend was hosting so the boys started the heavy lifting. All was going pretty well I guessed because I never got a phone call and a text. It was when I was sitting on the floor filling out my order form and my daughter becoming very cranky and tired that I heard my friend on the phone with her husband. When she hung up I heard her say, "Call your husband!" I looked at my phone and sure enough I missed 2 calls at this point! I called him back and he began to tell me that Security went up to the apartment and walked him down to the main office. Apparently because we were moving and using the elevator we needed to pay 100,000Won, after much discussion about how we were only using the elevator for the major things and using the stairs as much as we could because we were only 1 floor down they lowered it to 50,000Won. Ummm a little strange if you ask me. I guess people were getting pretty annoyed that we were using up the elevator so much for our move and they had important things to do. Oh well. This incident was really the biggest one we had so far all weekend.
Today was a pretty awesome day as well. Everyone helped out with Audrey a TON and we got a lot done. Both bathrooms, Audrey's play room, most of her bedroom (prior to her wanting to go to bed) and most of the office/workout room. Tomorrow I look forward to finishing both of those rooms, getting my closet and vanity set up along with starting our bedroom. I say starting because looking at it tonight I have to cringe and hope that we can have it done before Collin goes back to work on Tuesday! For those of you NOT on Facebook, please enjoy the following!
The Play room (now has ABC and 123 Mats!
Guest/Audrey's bathroom
I might not be able to have my jetted tub but I will take a spa like shower!
We have a pantry!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It makes up for not having a single drawer in the kitchen!
A huge laundry room for a Korean apartment!
And our DVD's have a new home.... the first time since we started living here like 8 months ago (15 months for Collin).
Tonight is just the kind of night I love after a long day. Audrey is already in bed, I am in my favorite spot and Collin and Tom are out in the living room playing Football on the PS3. What a fun weekend!
Happy Memorial Day family and friends and remember this weekend isn't just about the cookouts and long weekends.... its about those who have died fighting for Americans freedom! Thank you to all who have served and continue to serve. And thank you to all the Spouses and families who put up with it and love it ;)
As most of you know, and if you couldn't tell from the above, the family moved this weekend. We we were living on the 10th floor but we have moved down to the 9th. My elevator friend, yes I have an elevator friend, laughed at me when I told her we were moving to the 9th floor. She couldn't believe we were moving down. "Most people move up, " She said while shaking her head in disbelief. And it is true. If your going to move in a high rise you certainly don't move down, well unless your crazy Americans like us!
The move went relatively smooth except for a few hiccups but what move doesn't have though. However ours was a little weird. Friday Collin had a group of guys lined up to come over and help him move and only 1 work related friend showed up and that was Tom! Being his best friend however counts as a friend and not a work relation so forget I even said that. There was another soldier who came but Collin knows him as a friend and doesn't work anywhere with him. The last person who showed was his son Mike! Anyway a friend on mine headed off to a 31 party that another friend was hosting so the boys started the heavy lifting. All was going pretty well I guessed because I never got a phone call and a text. It was when I was sitting on the floor filling out my order form and my daughter becoming very cranky and tired that I heard my friend on the phone with her husband. When she hung up I heard her say, "Call your husband!" I looked at my phone and sure enough I missed 2 calls at this point! I called him back and he began to tell me that Security went up to the apartment and walked him down to the main office. Apparently because we were moving and using the elevator we needed to pay 100,000Won, after much discussion about how we were only using the elevator for the major things and using the stairs as much as we could because we were only 1 floor down they lowered it to 50,000Won. Ummm a little strange if you ask me. I guess people were getting pretty annoyed that we were using up the elevator so much for our move and they had important things to do. Oh well. This incident was really the biggest one we had so far all weekend.
Today was a pretty awesome day as well. Everyone helped out with Audrey a TON and we got a lot done. Both bathrooms, Audrey's play room, most of her bedroom (prior to her wanting to go to bed) and most of the office/workout room. Tomorrow I look forward to finishing both of those rooms, getting my closet and vanity set up along with starting our bedroom. I say starting because looking at it tonight I have to cringe and hope that we can have it done before Collin goes back to work on Tuesday! For those of you NOT on Facebook, please enjoy the following!
Tonight is just the kind of night I love after a long day. Audrey is already in bed, I am in my favorite spot and Collin and Tom are out in the living room playing Football on the PS3. What a fun weekend!
Happy Memorial Day family and friends and remember this weekend isn't just about the cookouts and long weekends.... its about those who have died fighting for Americans freedom! Thank you to all who have served and continue to serve. And thank you to all the Spouses and families who put up with it and love it ;)
Monday, May 19, 2014
America VS South Korea!
Tonight I would like to point out a few of the many differences between the USA and the Republic of Korea!
So with living in South Korea, specifically Seoul, I have learned that things are done differently then back in the states and the people are way different. The most obvious is the living arrangements. Back in the states the majority of homes are houses here they are apartments then there are the difference with what is in the home or going on in the home. I have come to learn that the land of tiny people don't believe in carpeting, you do not walk into a home with your shoes on, and you don't have a washer and a dryer. In fact you have an all in one! A friend of mine has this machine that washes your clothes and then dries them. Pretty fancy right? WRONG! This method for 1 load will take you 4-6 hours. Could you imagine waiting that long to do laundry? The next time I want to complain about the dryer taking so long I will remember how it could be worse. We are lucky enough to not have an apartment that came with this contraption and so we needed to borrow one from military housing! We have a washer and dryer. Very nice but very little room for both machines.
Another is transportation. Many people drive in this city but traffic laws don't really mean anything here, if your not making an illegal U turn, running a red light, blocking an ambulance, riding your motorcycle on the sidewalk (if you are a motorcycle owner), cutting someone off for NO REASON except you want to be a car link or two ahead, or going on the yellow/red light and having to stop in the middle of the intersection and blocking the oncoming traffic than you don't need to be driving in South Korea. You need to just take public transportation, because if you are a careful driver and believe in letting people get in front of you because they need to get in the other lane, stopping on yellow lights or obey any other traffic law you will probably get in an accident your first week here. Yes transportation if driving, is a dangerous adventure here. However, I have learned to love the idea of public transportation, however again if you are nice and don't look out for yourself you will get ran over or left not making it on the subway. We have waited for an elevator before with the stroller and somehow 2 elevator trips later we still were not on the elevator. WHY? Because we were not looking out for us and everyone push their way past the stroller and into the elevator until there was no room left.
With all this rule breaking and rudeness I have found 2 things lately that surprised me. So this past weekend we went to a baseball game. There was 4 of us and 1 of us had a last minute ticket and was not sitting in the same row. So our friend Tommi took that ticket and bounced around in seats until he was moved out of every single one of those seats. No problem, he was just hanging out as long as possible and figured he would lose out in the end and have to sit in his assigned seat. Well at one point I came back from the restroom and found him sitting in an empty row of 4 seats. Instead of asking everyone to move I just sat down beside him. This was 1 row below my seat so I figured worst case scenario I would just hop the seat to get back to mine. In America you see people who stand on a seat and move back to their row to avoid having to ask for the whole row to get up just so the traveling person could get to their seat. Well wouldn't you know the correct seat owner had shown up (in the 4th or 5th inning) so I hopped on the seat and jumped back to mine. BIG MISTAKE! I not only got chewed out in Korean but there was a big scene of this girl needing to get a wipe/towel of some type to wipe her seat off and I am not talking brushing off whatever I left on the seat I am talking cleaning the seat! WE ARE AT A BASEBALL GAME! Then there are slits in the back of the seats. Why they would do this in seats that are in a stadium I don't know but there are these slits and if you place your foot in the slit you will kick the person sitting in that seat. Well Tom or Collin happened to place their foot in the slit of the mother of the paranoid seat wiper and she along with her husband made sure to turn around with dirty looks and to let (they figured it was Tom) Tom know they didn't appreciate him kicker her. AGAIN WE ARE AT A BASEBALL GAME! Things happen no one was trying to kick anyone. It would have been the same as bumping into someone by accident on the sidewalk. Tom and Collin apologized in Korean, and in America this would have been returned with an it's ok, or a nod/smile of acknowledgement, they however just received the dirty looks. The second big thing I learned was that you do NOT leave ANY trash in your seating area at the end of the game. You will pick up everything around your seat even if it blew in your area. No empty cups, nacho trays, wrappers or straws better be laying around your area when you exit. We had two young girls quickly correct us on the mistake of not having ALL of our trash. Although it is amazing how much cleaner the sidewalks and streets are from having this kind of obedience.
Lastly I would like to touch on mourning. Now for anyone who may read this in the South Korea area I am not being disrespectful in anyway I am simply acknowledging the differences between America and here. As many of you know there was a ferry disaster here about a month ago. I am sure many of my American friends and family saw this and had deep sorrow for the families but in all honesty didn't think much more about it. Just like the mudslides that happened around the same time in Washington. Deep sorrow I am sure was felt but if you were not related or knew anyone in that accident you did not feel the need to mourn those loses other than feeling sad. I am sure some of you sent up prayers for the families, some of you sent positive vibes towards those families, some said "prayers for the families" but never really prayed. I get it, it is how Western society works. Now, let's look at an American disaster. Colorado (along with other States) have suffered some major natural disasters with all the fires. Many families mourned the losses of homes and and some the loss of a loved one. People all around Colorado watched for days to see if their home would be in danger. To see the destruction the fires were causing. However it did not stop America, it didn't even stop Colorado from moving forward, many of the families said that they just want to move on to start over and to deal with the pain they way they have to. Colorado everywhere lowered the flags, we stood together in helping families, supplying the fire fighters with what they needed, but we still celebrated we still moved on. I am not saying it wasn't a big deal just that America keeps moving on. Well here in South Korea they stop EVERY form of celebrating. They shut down the water show that shoots out from the bridge, they take away DJ's at a US military ball, they stop cheerleaders, all music and the mascots at baseball games, in fact I believe I heard that the whole Country will stay in mourning for 2 months after the ferry indecent. At first I thought it was pretty amazing how the Country as a whole mourned for the loss. It was tragic and it still effects all of us that lives here. I still get sick to my stomach every time I hear the news talk about it, but here they believe that if some are suffering everybody should suffer. It is so much different from America. It amazing to me the length they go to, to remind people of the suffering. I mean they shut off a water show that takes place for a half hour at night because it shows signs of happiness and celebration. I know this can be a very controversial topic that I just spoke of but I must say when it comes to tragedies I am so proud to be an American and the way we deal with them.
These are just a few of many differences living here but they are some of the biggest I have found. With all that being said, If you ever have a chance to visit here, it is pretty stinking awesome and a great life experience! With the hubby taking some leave time and the 4 day weekend I am definitely looking forward to our 6 day family vacation even if most of those days are working hard on the move :) I CANNOT WAIT TO SHOW YOU ALL PICTURES OF OUR NEW APARTMENT!
So with living in South Korea, specifically Seoul, I have learned that things are done differently then back in the states and the people are way different. The most obvious is the living arrangements. Back in the states the majority of homes are houses here they are apartments then there are the difference with what is in the home or going on in the home. I have come to learn that the land of tiny people don't believe in carpeting, you do not walk into a home with your shoes on, and you don't have a washer and a dryer. In fact you have an all in one! A friend of mine has this machine that washes your clothes and then dries them. Pretty fancy right? WRONG! This method for 1 load will take you 4-6 hours. Could you imagine waiting that long to do laundry? The next time I want to complain about the dryer taking so long I will remember how it could be worse. We are lucky enough to not have an apartment that came with this contraption and so we needed to borrow one from military housing! We have a washer and dryer. Very nice but very little room for both machines.
Another is transportation. Many people drive in this city but traffic laws don't really mean anything here, if your not making an illegal U turn, running a red light, blocking an ambulance, riding your motorcycle on the sidewalk (if you are a motorcycle owner), cutting someone off for NO REASON except you want to be a car link or two ahead, or going on the yellow/red light and having to stop in the middle of the intersection and blocking the oncoming traffic than you don't need to be driving in South Korea. You need to just take public transportation, because if you are a careful driver and believe in letting people get in front of you because they need to get in the other lane, stopping on yellow lights or obey any other traffic law you will probably get in an accident your first week here. Yes transportation if driving, is a dangerous adventure here. However, I have learned to love the idea of public transportation, however again if you are nice and don't look out for yourself you will get ran over or left not making it on the subway. We have waited for an elevator before with the stroller and somehow 2 elevator trips later we still were not on the elevator. WHY? Because we were not looking out for us and everyone push their way past the stroller and into the elevator until there was no room left.
With all this rule breaking and rudeness I have found 2 things lately that surprised me. So this past weekend we went to a baseball game. There was 4 of us and 1 of us had a last minute ticket and was not sitting in the same row. So our friend Tommi took that ticket and bounced around in seats until he was moved out of every single one of those seats. No problem, he was just hanging out as long as possible and figured he would lose out in the end and have to sit in his assigned seat. Well at one point I came back from the restroom and found him sitting in an empty row of 4 seats. Instead of asking everyone to move I just sat down beside him. This was 1 row below my seat so I figured worst case scenario I would just hop the seat to get back to mine. In America you see people who stand on a seat and move back to their row to avoid having to ask for the whole row to get up just so the traveling person could get to their seat. Well wouldn't you know the correct seat owner had shown up (in the 4th or 5th inning) so I hopped on the seat and jumped back to mine. BIG MISTAKE! I not only got chewed out in Korean but there was a big scene of this girl needing to get a wipe/towel of some type to wipe her seat off and I am not talking brushing off whatever I left on the seat I am talking cleaning the seat! WE ARE AT A BASEBALL GAME! Then there are slits in the back of the seats. Why they would do this in seats that are in a stadium I don't know but there are these slits and if you place your foot in the slit you will kick the person sitting in that seat. Well Tom or Collin happened to place their foot in the slit of the mother of the paranoid seat wiper and she along with her husband made sure to turn around with dirty looks and to let (they figured it was Tom) Tom know they didn't appreciate him kicker her. AGAIN WE ARE AT A BASEBALL GAME! Things happen no one was trying to kick anyone. It would have been the same as bumping into someone by accident on the sidewalk. Tom and Collin apologized in Korean, and in America this would have been returned with an it's ok, or a nod/smile of acknowledgement, they however just received the dirty looks. The second big thing I learned was that you do NOT leave ANY trash in your seating area at the end of the game. You will pick up everything around your seat even if it blew in your area. No empty cups, nacho trays, wrappers or straws better be laying around your area when you exit. We had two young girls quickly correct us on the mistake of not having ALL of our trash. Although it is amazing how much cleaner the sidewalks and streets are from having this kind of obedience.
Lastly I would like to touch on mourning. Now for anyone who may read this in the South Korea area I am not being disrespectful in anyway I am simply acknowledging the differences between America and here. As many of you know there was a ferry disaster here about a month ago. I am sure many of my American friends and family saw this and had deep sorrow for the families but in all honesty didn't think much more about it. Just like the mudslides that happened around the same time in Washington. Deep sorrow I am sure was felt but if you were not related or knew anyone in that accident you did not feel the need to mourn those loses other than feeling sad. I am sure some of you sent up prayers for the families, some of you sent positive vibes towards those families, some said "prayers for the families" but never really prayed. I get it, it is how Western society works. Now, let's look at an American disaster. Colorado (along with other States) have suffered some major natural disasters with all the fires. Many families mourned the losses of homes and and some the loss of a loved one. People all around Colorado watched for days to see if their home would be in danger. To see the destruction the fires were causing. However it did not stop America, it didn't even stop Colorado from moving forward, many of the families said that they just want to move on to start over and to deal with the pain they way they have to. Colorado everywhere lowered the flags, we stood together in helping families, supplying the fire fighters with what they needed, but we still celebrated we still moved on. I am not saying it wasn't a big deal just that America keeps moving on. Well here in South Korea they stop EVERY form of celebrating. They shut down the water show that shoots out from the bridge, they take away DJ's at a US military ball, they stop cheerleaders, all music and the mascots at baseball games, in fact I believe I heard that the whole Country will stay in mourning for 2 months after the ferry indecent. At first I thought it was pretty amazing how the Country as a whole mourned for the loss. It was tragic and it still effects all of us that lives here. I still get sick to my stomach every time I hear the news talk about it, but here they believe that if some are suffering everybody should suffer. It is so much different from America. It amazing to me the length they go to, to remind people of the suffering. I mean they shut off a water show that takes place for a half hour at night because it shows signs of happiness and celebration. I know this can be a very controversial topic that I just spoke of but I must say when it comes to tragedies I am so proud to be an American and the way we deal with them.
These are just a few of many differences living here but they are some of the biggest I have found. With all that being said, If you ever have a chance to visit here, it is pretty stinking awesome and a great life experience! With the hubby taking some leave time and the 4 day weekend I am definitely looking forward to our 6 day family vacation even if most of those days are working hard on the move :) I CANNOT WAIT TO SHOW YOU ALL PICTURES OF OUR NEW APARTMENT!
Sunday, May 11, 2014
So much to tell
HELLO EVERYBODY AND A VERY HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL THE MOMMY'S OUT THERE!!!!!!!!
So I really wanted to get this post out last week, obviously that did not happen. However, now I am back in my zone! My mothers day gift, for those who haven't seen, was patio furniture. No I don't have a patio but I have a closed in balcony and I love coming out here to do my work or just to relax. There is nothing like the window open on a spring/fall early morning or night and hearing the city traffic and the city life either wake up or slow down. I love it and though I miss the simpleness of living in a town where I can drive anywhere and everywhere I am totally going to miss this when I leave. I love it and it makes me calm myself on bad days and makes me a happy person! Plus now when I get back to the states I have a patio furniture that seats 2!
Daddy's little helper!
So last Friday we had our Culture night dinner! It was free and fun! It started out that they had my husband down as PFC Shorey (he is not a Private First Class) and they did not have me on the list. So that was a little annoying but they got us seated and we ended up sitting with some young enlisted members and so Collin was in his element. He felt like he was able to mentor a little bit with every question they asked him. There wasn't all the toasts associated with the military balls so that was nice! The entertainment was pretty good too. We had a performance by a University and they did some traditional Korean routines to traditional Korean music. During dinner they also had a couple Oprah like singers which were pretty amazing a man and a woman and they traded off every other song. The food was fantastic, and again free and really who doesn't like free! It was so good that I ate shrimp! I don't eat shrimp, anyone who knows me knows I don't eat anything that used to live in the water. I thought it was orange glaze chicken but it wasn't... I won't be eating shrimp anytime soon but truth be told it wasn't half bad. They had amazing prizes as well that consisted of, bikes, i pads, and CARS! Yes they even gave away 2 cars, and no we didn't win. All in all it was a fantastic night and did I mention it was free! Korea's know how to do it right! They are fantastic hosts!
This week has been fun. We went to the Children's zoo and that is free (can you tell I love free!) The zoo was not that great but for free it was super! The elephant and the polar bear both seemed to have something wrong with them (a messed up ear and a crooked nose) but we are thinking there is a reason those they were at the free zoo. They also have an amusement park there, a small one but I was still excited. However as walking towards the entrance we found it closed which made me sad, but they had a few playgrounds and it was a fun day. We had some friends join us and things are always better with friends.
A toy that she still can't figure out how to walk with
Watching the seals
A water show
Another thing that Koreans do well is celebrating holidays! When I came here September of 2013 they were celebrating Chusok, basically Thanksgiving. Well they got 3 full days off of work. I am talking restaurants shut down, stores closed down, heck I couldn't even activate my cell phone until Monday! We got here on a Tuesday night and I got my phone on Wednesday! Well this past week was Children's Day, Buddha's Birthday, and Parents day and so when most people went home last Friday from work they didn't return until Wednesday or Thursday. A friend wanted to take me and another friend to a Korean restaurant on Monday, Children's day but they were all shut down! We ended up with pizza. CHILDREN'S DAY! THEY GET THE DAY OFF FOR CHILDREN'S DAY!
However in light of Buddha's birthday we did go to the Lateran festival! As always it was absolutely amazing and I always find it interesting when I get a peak at another religion or get to learn a bit about it. I got to get a good peak inside the Buddhist temple and found it fascinating. So many questions pop in my head, I even saw many participants of the Buddhist faith bring a monk many gifts. To see these followers bow and become so humble standing in front of this man and give him bags of treasures made me wonder, what could possibly be in those bags?! I mean really what gift could you possible wrap up to give to someone so mighty that you must bow to him?
This guy actually created the Korean language
A temple lantern
Inside the temple
The monk carrying out some of his gifts
Let's see what else has taken place..... oh yes! Many of you know we got our list for new duty stations. Well it was a horrible list and we are not looking forward to anywhere the military wants to send us next however....... I WILL MAKE THE MOST OUT OF WHEREVER THEY SEND US! That being said, and yes my parents and immediate family are aware, we very well could be staying in Korea until early 2016. We have not gotten orders yet and we have not been directly told yet but that is now a very real possibility. Prior to finding this out I have been wanting a bigger apartment. I have been wanting a bigger apartment especially now that I have met people and everyone seems to have bigger and better. Collin got this apartment before we moved here and so many people say they were trying to get into our specific apartments. Yes we are in an amazing location but we have some things lacking for us. First off we have have a pretty small 3 bedroom apartment. Just not enough room for stuff. I do think that it is because I moved from such a big house. However, I have been to at least 4 other apartments and all of them are bigger or newer. My second issue is play area's for Audrey. It seems like everyone else has a lot more and a lot better playgrounds and inside play rooms in and around their complex. In fact a buddy of our who just moved here got a 4 bedroom in a gated community and very new and nice. The down fall is that his location is not as great as ours and his dryer is in his kitchen. I believe that when looking out his living room window I see a splash pad for kids 10 floors down. Ummmm Audrey needs that!!!! Needless to say Collin heard about how great his apartment was compared to ours the majority of the time. Although on the way home to our apartment I admitted that where we live is just fine and the location is great. I told him that I realize the grass is always greener on the other side and no matter where I lived somewhere else would always have something more. So for fun Collin asked our realtor if they had anything bigger but in the same area. In less than 24 hours we were looking at a bigger nicer apartment. Best part about it, is that it is in the same exact building and one floor below us! So I get all the wonderful amenities that I already have, close to base, close to the subway, several convenient stores right outside the apartment doors if we ever need something in a hurry, a taxi stand just around the corner, and plenty of coffee shops connect to the building. Oh yeah and that huge burger I took a picture of that lasted me 2 meals..... just a crossed the street hahaha! I get to keep all that and get a bigger nicer apartment by the end of May! The only thing that makes me sad is the play area's for Audrey. That is what friends are for right? Our buddy who lives in the really nice apartment but not so great location.... I think he will get plenty of company this summer :)
The insanely huge burger!
Well I appreciate you stopping by today! I must get my butt to bed now as I have church in the morning. For any of you who are my wonderful Scentsy customers I am sorry for not getting this months items out. I usually have it out already but this month has been busy!
I hope everyone has a great weekend and a very HAPPY MOTHERS DAY if you are indeed a mom!
So I really wanted to get this post out last week, obviously that did not happen. However, now I am back in my zone! My mothers day gift, for those who haven't seen, was patio furniture. No I don't have a patio but I have a closed in balcony and I love coming out here to do my work or just to relax. There is nothing like the window open on a spring/fall early morning or night and hearing the city traffic and the city life either wake up or slow down. I love it and though I miss the simpleness of living in a town where I can drive anywhere and everywhere I am totally going to miss this when I leave. I love it and it makes me calm myself on bad days and makes me a happy person! Plus now when I get back to the states I have a patio furniture that seats 2!
So last Friday we had our Culture night dinner! It was free and fun! It started out that they had my husband down as PFC Shorey (he is not a Private First Class) and they did not have me on the list. So that was a little annoying but they got us seated and we ended up sitting with some young enlisted members and so Collin was in his element. He felt like he was able to mentor a little bit with every question they asked him. There wasn't all the toasts associated with the military balls so that was nice! The entertainment was pretty good too. We had a performance by a University and they did some traditional Korean routines to traditional Korean music. During dinner they also had a couple Oprah like singers which were pretty amazing a man and a woman and they traded off every other song. The food was fantastic, and again free and really who doesn't like free! It was so good that I ate shrimp! I don't eat shrimp, anyone who knows me knows I don't eat anything that used to live in the water. I thought it was orange glaze chicken but it wasn't... I won't be eating shrimp anytime soon but truth be told it wasn't half bad. They had amazing prizes as well that consisted of, bikes, i pads, and CARS! Yes they even gave away 2 cars, and no we didn't win. All in all it was a fantastic night and did I mention it was free! Korea's know how to do it right! They are fantastic hosts!
Another thing that Koreans do well is celebrating holidays! When I came here September of 2013 they were celebrating Chusok, basically Thanksgiving. Well they got 3 full days off of work. I am talking restaurants shut down, stores closed down, heck I couldn't even activate my cell phone until Monday! We got here on a Tuesday night and I got my phone on Wednesday! Well this past week was Children's Day, Buddha's Birthday, and Parents day and so when most people went home last Friday from work they didn't return until Wednesday or Thursday. A friend wanted to take me and another friend to a Korean restaurant on Monday, Children's day but they were all shut down! We ended up with pizza. CHILDREN'S DAY! THEY GET THE DAY OFF FOR CHILDREN'S DAY!
However in light of Buddha's birthday we did go to the Lateran festival! As always it was absolutely amazing and I always find it interesting when I get a peak at another religion or get to learn a bit about it. I got to get a good peak inside the Buddhist temple and found it fascinating. So many questions pop in my head, I even saw many participants of the Buddhist faith bring a monk many gifts. To see these followers bow and become so humble standing in front of this man and give him bags of treasures made me wonder, what could possibly be in those bags?! I mean really what gift could you possible wrap up to give to someone so mighty that you must bow to him?
Well I appreciate you stopping by today! I must get my butt to bed now as I have church in the morning. For any of you who are my wonderful Scentsy customers I am sorry for not getting this months items out. I usually have it out already but this month has been busy!
I hope everyone has a great weekend and a very HAPPY MOTHERS DAY if you are indeed a mom!
Monday, April 28, 2014
Military Balls in Korea
Well hello everyone and happy Monday to most of you. I thought I would share the on goings on the MI ball that was held last week!
Military balls are a time of beauty, a time for the woman of the military and the female spouses to get pampered. You go shopping for the prettiest ball gown that fits your style, you find the shoes, the purse and figure out the hair. Friday before the ball I went and got my nails done and a massage. The french wrap is lovely and the massage ruined me. It was my first Korean massage and let me tell you IT HURT! I didn't realize just how much it hurt until the next morning Collin rubbed my back and I winced of pain and quickly ran to the mirror to make sure I wasn't bruised for the big evening. Thankfully I was not. I had never had such a horrible massage and it makes me miss Brenda from the Springs sooooooooooooo much! She gives the best massages ever and I wish I could pay her a visit and talk about our kids together. They are only 3 weeks apart.... anyway I digress. Saturday was a day of fun.... I had my eyebrows and lip waxed, my makeup done and then my feet and hair. It was tons of fun! Because they did my feet and hair at the same time I got done about an hour sooner then I wanted too and had about an hour to sit around the house and hope my makeup didn't sweat off and my hair stayed in place.
Finally 540 came. Collin, Tom, and I were all ready to roll! We headed downstairs to catch a cab and we were on our way to the ball. Now most people love the final stage of the ball, including myself, because that is when all the official stuff is over and the DJ starts the dancing and they usually start off with the famous electric slide within the first few songs to get everyone moving.... Not the case for us that evening, no not a single dance. Korea is still in a time of mourning and as long as that is happening certain elements of fun are prohibited. So no DJ for us. However the night was very nice and probably the most upscale military ball I will EVER attend. The hotel had an enormous social area, a ball room for pictures and socializing. There were BMW's on display along with ice sculptures. The main lobby was filled with fancy stores with beautiful clothes and expensive time pieces. There were some of the most beautiful dresses I have ever seen worn in person. We were called into dinner area which was another enormous ball room. Once seated with stood for the colors and for the official party. Following was a series of toasts and a prayer. In America this part is usually long and by the end of the speakers most people are not even paying attention. However I will never think that again. In Korea you do everything in English and then in Korean. So yes this section of the night was twice as long as it usually is back in the states. Dinner was served after all the important guests of the official party who were scheduled to speak spoke. I was pretty shocked when I realized the first thing brought out to us was a piece of freshly cut salmon for each place setting. I was shocked but sad as I wanted a salad NOT FISH! I don't eat anything that used to swim. So even though I was thinking fancy fancy I was scrunching up my nose and couldn't wait for them to take it away. We were then served a very yummy soup. Not sure what exactly it was but it seemed like it was some sort of potato soup. Dinner was delicious. Collin had the chicken and I had the beef tenderloin and it melted in my mouth. Best ball food I ever had (except for the salmon). I do not fully know what the dessert was either but it looked so fancy. You know like one of those $15.00 desserts that is only about 3 bites with a small ball of strawberry ice cream.
During dinner we had entertainment. The JROTC kids did some awesome rifle routines and did a great job. There were 2 sets of dance groups and then the Violets. They are a group of 3 who play a bass, violin, and a flute to 'pop' music closing with Eye of the Tiger. It was pretty cool. I should have recorded it.
After all was said and done I even went over and saw my trainer and we got to talk for awhile. I felt very out of place as she was sitting at the head table with her husband, but she seemed very happy that I went to go talk to her.
All in all it was a great evening (even with the salmon and without the DJ). I love going to the salon and getting all pretty and having Collin all handsome in his uniform. We clean up pretty well! This Friday is ball number 2 and although I am still uncertain about the dress I am very excited to get all done up again but on a smaller scale.
Well it is Monday night my time and time to head off to bed. I have the USO at 9am and the gym at 3! I hope everyone has a terrific day!
Military balls are a time of beauty, a time for the woman of the military and the female spouses to get pampered. You go shopping for the prettiest ball gown that fits your style, you find the shoes, the purse and figure out the hair. Friday before the ball I went and got my nails done and a massage. The french wrap is lovely and the massage ruined me. It was my first Korean massage and let me tell you IT HURT! I didn't realize just how much it hurt until the next morning Collin rubbed my back and I winced of pain and quickly ran to the mirror to make sure I wasn't bruised for the big evening. Thankfully I was not. I had never had such a horrible massage and it makes me miss Brenda from the Springs sooooooooooooo much! She gives the best massages ever and I wish I could pay her a visit and talk about our kids together. They are only 3 weeks apart.... anyway I digress. Saturday was a day of fun.... I had my eyebrows and lip waxed, my makeup done and then my feet and hair. It was tons of fun! Because they did my feet and hair at the same time I got done about an hour sooner then I wanted too and had about an hour to sit around the house and hope my makeup didn't sweat off and my hair stayed in place.
Finally 540 came. Collin, Tom, and I were all ready to roll! We headed downstairs to catch a cab and we were on our way to the ball. Now most people love the final stage of the ball, including myself, because that is when all the official stuff is over and the DJ starts the dancing and they usually start off with the famous electric slide within the first few songs to get everyone moving.... Not the case for us that evening, no not a single dance. Korea is still in a time of mourning and as long as that is happening certain elements of fun are prohibited. So no DJ for us. However the night was very nice and probably the most upscale military ball I will EVER attend. The hotel had an enormous social area, a ball room for pictures and socializing. There were BMW's on display along with ice sculptures. The main lobby was filled with fancy stores with beautiful clothes and expensive time pieces. There were some of the most beautiful dresses I have ever seen worn in person. We were called into dinner area which was another enormous ball room. Once seated with stood for the colors and for the official party. Following was a series of toasts and a prayer. In America this part is usually long and by the end of the speakers most people are not even paying attention. However I will never think that again. In Korea you do everything in English and then in Korean. So yes this section of the night was twice as long as it usually is back in the states. Dinner was served after all the important guests of the official party who were scheduled to speak spoke. I was pretty shocked when I realized the first thing brought out to us was a piece of freshly cut salmon for each place setting. I was shocked but sad as I wanted a salad NOT FISH! I don't eat anything that used to swim. So even though I was thinking fancy fancy I was scrunching up my nose and couldn't wait for them to take it away. We were then served a very yummy soup. Not sure what exactly it was but it seemed like it was some sort of potato soup. Dinner was delicious. Collin had the chicken and I had the beef tenderloin and it melted in my mouth. Best ball food I ever had (except for the salmon). I do not fully know what the dessert was either but it looked so fancy. You know like one of those $15.00 desserts that is only about 3 bites with a small ball of strawberry ice cream.
During dinner we had entertainment. The JROTC kids did some awesome rifle routines and did a great job. There were 2 sets of dance groups and then the Violets. They are a group of 3 who play a bass, violin, and a flute to 'pop' music closing with Eye of the Tiger. It was pretty cool. I should have recorded it.
After all was said and done I even went over and saw my trainer and we got to talk for awhile. I felt very out of place as she was sitting at the head table with her husband, but she seemed very happy that I went to go talk to her.
All in all it was a great evening (even with the salmon and without the DJ). I love going to the salon and getting all pretty and having Collin all handsome in his uniform. We clean up pretty well! This Friday is ball number 2 and although I am still uncertain about the dress I am very excited to get all done up again but on a smaller scale.
Well it is Monday night my time and time to head off to bed. I have the USO at 9am and the gym at 3! I hope everyone has a terrific day!
Friday, April 18, 2014
I AM A BEAST.... or so I like to think I am....
Hello everyone! I hope your doing fantastic! I am busy as always
but doing pretty well. I have struggled the past couple of weeks in
school and will probably struggle the remainder of the class do to
falling behind in the reading. However even after falling behind I am
still holding a very low A but it is an A. Now to figure out how to
continue that A for 2 more weeks. Next semester I will be part time and
only taking 2 classes because I am taking the next 5 weeks off. I am
still feeling positive and am enrolled to restart in 7 weeks. At first I
wasn't ok with this but I know how I am wired and I need to do this.
As some of you have seen I am meeting with a personal trainer twice a week. She is amazing and I couldn't have dreamed up a better trainer! She is very clear that I will finish ever last set even if that means I have to take a break with 5 to go and drop weight. But with the this kind of training it is easy to push through. On Tuesday I had to take that break at 6 out of 12 I dropped weight but I finished my military press. Today I not only went up in weight in 4 area's but on my last set of military press I took a break at 10 out of 15. Yes that is right I not only bumped up in weights but I bumped up in reps! I am a beast! Ok well I feel like one at the gym.... its the day after that I am not feeling very beast like :)
So the military ball is coming up next Saturday and then the Friendship ball is the following Friday. Both of my dresses need alterations now! Sadly not around the waist but it does say something for my weight lose. The one for the MI Ball is a quick alteration but the one for the Friendship Ball is A LOT! Not as much as what they wanted to do on post though, the Koreans had a much better idea of how to fix it. I am just hoping it looks ok..... eek!
I started this blog last night (Thursday night) and I fell asleep before I finished so let me enlighten you on my day date today! We asked the Nanny to come today so Collin and I could have some time to go hang out. It was awesome! We had lunch at Subway with our friend Tommi. Tommi is Collins best friend who just got stationed out here! It is so awesome to have him here, some of you know Tommi actually married Collin and I at Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs. After lunch we then went to the batting cages. We hit 50 balls each, and I who hadn't held a bat in YEARS, did pretty great! I hit over 50% at least! Then we went and played some putt putt. Now many of you know I do not lose much when it comes to some mini golf in fact I can't remember the last time I lost! However Collin put a whopping on me. He beat me by 10! That is just insane, I think he has been practicing all week (even though he says he hadn't). After that he was daring enough to take me out to the range and I hit 57 of the 60 balls (I let him play a little) I am happy to report that I impressed him, being my first time ever to hold a golf club in my hand. Who knows maybe this will turn into my next little hobby one day......maybe!
Now for a little bit of seriousness. I hope that you can all join me in prayers for the families of the unaccounted for in the Ferry accident here in South Korea. I have thought about taking the 14 hour ferry ride down to Jeju instead of a flight. You can get little cabin rooms and I thought it would be fun. I still keep an open mind to it but it saddens me to hear of all the students who are still missing. Praying that there are enough air pockets and that there will be more survivors even with the frigid waters. So much evil in the world has been happening. I couldn't imagine being one of those parents, siblings, or even friend of anyone on that ship. So many young people were on that ship and my heart breaks so much for them. I also pray for the Captain as he I am sure will continue to be a hated man for the rest of his life. I couldn't imagine the hatred that is coming his way, the remorse he feels, and I don't know how he will ever be able to move on in his life. Even though he has made this tragic mistake I pray for him and his family also. He was in charge of this ship, driving or not, he was in command of which way this ship should go and he choose poorly trying to make up for lost time. The song "Forgiveness" by Matthew West says it best. I can honestly say even as a Christian I don't know how forgiving I would be or I would feel towards the Captain if I had a loved one on that ship. I can honestly say I would feel much hatred for him. That is a fault I have as a human. I thankfully am not in that position so hopefully I can pray for this man. Let us also remember the search team in our prayers. The weather is not cooperating and there isn't much success being done in the way of finding passengers. They have a tough job out there and they are working through this weather. Last I heard a few divers had been missing. I do not know the status of them but I am also praying for the divers and search crews that they remain safe and will be successful in their mission.
Now back to a lighter note......because I don't like ending these sad. Easter is this Sunday, I for one cannot wait for our 0630 sunrise service at the Dragon Hill lodge. I desperately miss Easter Sunday at the ball field in Colorado Springs. Those were the best and as my parents can vouch there is just something extra sweet about filling the seats behind home plate and even a little further out past the netting. However if your reading this and have post access to Yongsan I urge you to come out to the Dragon for 'Sonrise' service I think it is going to be pretty sweet.
After church we will have Audrey hunt down her basket and have a little Easter egg hunt for her in one of the little out door garden area's of our apartment complex. Well maybe after Church and after a nap since we will have to wake her around 0500.
I hope everyone has a blessed Good Friday and Easter weekend!
Also if you are into photography go ahead and check out Collins latest blog:
www.topheradamsphoto.blogspot.com
As some of you have seen I am meeting with a personal trainer twice a week. She is amazing and I couldn't have dreamed up a better trainer! She is very clear that I will finish ever last set even if that means I have to take a break with 5 to go and drop weight. But with the this kind of training it is easy to push through. On Tuesday I had to take that break at 6 out of 12 I dropped weight but I finished my military press. Today I not only went up in weight in 4 area's but on my last set of military press I took a break at 10 out of 15. Yes that is right I not only bumped up in weights but I bumped up in reps! I am a beast! Ok well I feel like one at the gym.... its the day after that I am not feeling very beast like :)
So the military ball is coming up next Saturday and then the Friendship ball is the following Friday. Both of my dresses need alterations now! Sadly not around the waist but it does say something for my weight lose. The one for the MI Ball is a quick alteration but the one for the Friendship Ball is A LOT! Not as much as what they wanted to do on post though, the Koreans had a much better idea of how to fix it. I am just hoping it looks ok..... eek!
I started this blog last night (Thursday night) and I fell asleep before I finished so let me enlighten you on my day date today! We asked the Nanny to come today so Collin and I could have some time to go hang out. It was awesome! We had lunch at Subway with our friend Tommi. Tommi is Collins best friend who just got stationed out here! It is so awesome to have him here, some of you know Tommi actually married Collin and I at Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs. After lunch we then went to the batting cages. We hit 50 balls each, and I who hadn't held a bat in YEARS, did pretty great! I hit over 50% at least! Then we went and played some putt putt. Now many of you know I do not lose much when it comes to some mini golf in fact I can't remember the last time I lost! However Collin put a whopping on me. He beat me by 10! That is just insane, I think he has been practicing all week (even though he says he hadn't). After that he was daring enough to take me out to the range and I hit 57 of the 60 balls (I let him play a little) I am happy to report that I impressed him, being my first time ever to hold a golf club in my hand. Who knows maybe this will turn into my next little hobby one day......maybe!
Now for a little bit of seriousness. I hope that you can all join me in prayers for the families of the unaccounted for in the Ferry accident here in South Korea. I have thought about taking the 14 hour ferry ride down to Jeju instead of a flight. You can get little cabin rooms and I thought it would be fun. I still keep an open mind to it but it saddens me to hear of all the students who are still missing. Praying that there are enough air pockets and that there will be more survivors even with the frigid waters. So much evil in the world has been happening. I couldn't imagine being one of those parents, siblings, or even friend of anyone on that ship. So many young people were on that ship and my heart breaks so much for them. I also pray for the Captain as he I am sure will continue to be a hated man for the rest of his life. I couldn't imagine the hatred that is coming his way, the remorse he feels, and I don't know how he will ever be able to move on in his life. Even though he has made this tragic mistake I pray for him and his family also. He was in charge of this ship, driving or not, he was in command of which way this ship should go and he choose poorly trying to make up for lost time. The song "Forgiveness" by Matthew West says it best. I can honestly say even as a Christian I don't know how forgiving I would be or I would feel towards the Captain if I had a loved one on that ship. I can honestly say I would feel much hatred for him. That is a fault I have as a human. I thankfully am not in that position so hopefully I can pray for this man. Let us also remember the search team in our prayers. The weather is not cooperating and there isn't much success being done in the way of finding passengers. They have a tough job out there and they are working through this weather. Last I heard a few divers had been missing. I do not know the status of them but I am also praying for the divers and search crews that they remain safe and will be successful in their mission.
Now back to a lighter note......because I don't like ending these sad. Easter is this Sunday, I for one cannot wait for our 0630 sunrise service at the Dragon Hill lodge. I desperately miss Easter Sunday at the ball field in Colorado Springs. Those were the best and as my parents can vouch there is just something extra sweet about filling the seats behind home plate and even a little further out past the netting. However if your reading this and have post access to Yongsan I urge you to come out to the Dragon for 'Sonrise' service I think it is going to be pretty sweet.
After church we will have Audrey hunt down her basket and have a little Easter egg hunt for her in one of the little out door garden area's of our apartment complex. Well maybe after Church and after a nap since we will have to wake her around 0500.
I hope everyone has a blessed Good Friday and Easter weekend!
Also if you are into photography go ahead and check out Collins latest blog:
www.topheradamsphoto.blogspot.com
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