A few more gifts to start my Friday off right

15.  Toddler version of Ring around the Rosy- 'wanna ro ro!'
16. Being able to shower without said toddler
17.  Beautiful fall mornings.
18.  Wonderful friends to trade babysitting with.
19.  Time to go check out new photography spots.
20.  Health improvements for a friend's little girl. 
21.  Finishing the top piece of my Halloween quilt.
22.  Teaching a friend how to sew a quilt for her daughter.
23. Finding lots of neat ideas for a Halloween party- that aren't gruesome or freaky.
24.  Movie night with popcorn and hot chocolate. :)

Just wanted to make sure that I kept up with my blessing list- since I totally forgot to post them for the last few days. 

Halloween wreath

Fall always makes me want to craft ALOT!  Since September was so busy with friends and family, I didn't even have time to pull out my fall decorations.  This last week, with Jon being on leave and the older two in school, I pulled out my boxes and managed to get most of my fall items out and placed around the house.  Just one picture for now, my Halloween wreath.  Inspired by Tatertots and Jello's halloween wreath http://tatertotsandjello.com/2010/09/happy-halloween-wreath-tutorial.html , this is my take on it. :)  We are a bit limited here as to holiday ribbon, and I didn't want to wait and order ribbon from the states, since it takes roughly a week to a month to get craft orders.  Anyhow, please enjoy, and leave some love at TT&J if you liked her tutorial! :)

more pictures

Here are a few more pictures of Gyungbokgung Palace. :)  Hope you like them!

Caitlynn took the two shots of me, which turned out to be hilarious, because she had my ridiculously expensive camera hung around her neck, and a Korean lady was snapping tons of pictures of Cait while she was taking my picture.  Jon just laughed and shook his head.  The lady was nice enough to offer to take a shot of Cait and I, so that's where that one came from. :)

A beautiful reflecting pool. The water was directed in such a way that the water would remain perfectly still, in order to maintain the glass-like quality. 



Looking back towards the main entrance.



Nana <3

The King's throne.

more of the throne room. 

The actual Palace Museum, which we didn't go into.  Maybe on another trip. :)

When the Japanese invaded, this is the palace that was hastily built for the king and queen, since they got kicked out of the main palace.  This is also where the queen was murdered, and afterwards, the king moved to one of the other palaces, so this one was never painted.

From the main entrance looking in.

Not really sure... one of the kids took this. :D



Another kid pic.  The Korean people believed that these statues would protect them from evil spirits.  They are all over the place on many of the buildings here.

More to come, as I catch up on my editing!

And more blessings...
8.  snuggly warm blankets.
9.  pumpkins, pinecones, candy corn, leaves, apple cider..
10.  my children's laughter
11.  the experience of living in a different country
12.  learning a new language and teaching it to my children
13.  encouraging friends
14.  being encouraged by friends



1000 gifts

1.  A peacful, quiet night.
2.  Cool weather (perfect for a hoodie and jeans)!
3.  Beautiful photographs.
4.  Memories made with Nana during her visit to Korea.
5.  A clean kitchen sink (finally)!

6.  Yummy smelling candles burning.

7.  A wonderful husband and father who takes such good care of us.

 

Sorry for the long delay between posts.  Sometimes I really don't have time to post, other times I forget, and still others... I don't have the words.  :)

Here are a couple of pictures from our recent trip to Gyungbokgung Palace, also home of the National Palace Museum of South Korea.  Absolutely stunning architecture, colors, everything.  :)  It is so much better in person. 

ok, so after 2 months of NOT blogging...

I'm back! 

Didja miss me??  lol

Anyhow, I have been wanting to pick back up and start posting again.. but then I thought, well, who really wants to read my ramblings??  On the way home from the Sesame Street Live performance (which was pretty cool for the kids), I started thinking, and realized that I really stink at scrapbooking- hence the reason that Jacob only has an album to about oh... 2 years old?  So blogging will now be my version of scrapbooking- keeping track of all the little things we do, since I tend to take a bajillion photos anywhere we go. :D    I've looked into digital scrapbooking, but I can't really seem to get much into it.  Plus, nowhere cheap to print stuff here! 

Jamie got a bit jealous when I was photographing two baby girls in the grass.. he decided to get in on the action.  This picture is from when he was still relatively clean (this was one of our BBQ get togethers).   :D

Jacob and about 6 of his friends played kickball with Jon and Kyle (a friend's husband). Note that they are all barefoot.. hehe

Jon pitching the ball.

Miss Prissy Pants running to second base. :D 

Ohh, the dirt that came off of these children that night in the tub... Horrifying!

Well, that's about all for now.  I can't find a recent picture of me without digging into a folder that I will be pulling from for tomorrow's post... guess I will have to work on putting myself in FRONT of the camera every once in awhile. :P  My goal is to post at least a few lines every night for one week... we'll see how that goes, maybe I can keep it up.

resurrection eggs

So, as usual, I am running behind on when I had planned to start this Easter activity. :)

I am using the example from http://www.wearethatfamily.com/ and making my own Resurrection Eggs to teach the kids a little more about the story of Easter.  This year, we are also not buying the pre-stuffed Easter baskets.  1. because they are too scarce here
2. because I end up throwing away almost all the toys from them within a week
and 3.  because I don't want my kids to grow up like I did thinking that Easter is just another time to receive candy and presents. 

I want my kids to know the joy and celebration that is Easter... and I want them to know WHY.  There is a great little show that comes on AFN channel 4 (or maybe its 3...?) on Sundays right now.  It is a documentary of the Easter story, showing the real life place that it happened, and a movie-type imaging of what might have happened.  The narrator shares some great explanations for what happened, and has great insights into the Bible verses.  It truly does bring the Easter story to life, in a family friendly way. 

Anyhow, this is my list of what I am using in the Eggs. 

1.  a picture of a donkey (Jesus' triumphal entry)
2.  picture of a palm leaf (since S. Korea doesn't exactly grow many of those :)
3.  a cup (lid to a water bottle, or one of Cait's mini tea set cups, I haven't decided yet- representing the Last Supper)
4.  a flower (using a fake one, obviously, from the local craft store- representing the garden at Gethesmane)
5. some coins (Judas' betrayal)
6.  a piece of leather (symbolizing the whip)
7.  a picture of the crown of thorns
8.  a paper cross
9.  a dice (representing the gambling for his clothes)
10.  a nail (crucifixion)
11.  a rock (to cover the tomb)
12.  an empty egg (the empty tomb)

Thanks again to Kristen at http://www.wearethatfamily.com/ for posting this.  It is a huge help to me and probably many other families that might not have creative ideas to get their kids to learn the real story of Easter. 

What are some things that you do to help celebrate Easter?

Catch up posting!

I just noticed its been over a month since I last updated.. Figured I would take a couple of minutes to unload all that has happened since then. 
2/25- My last official function as part of West Casey Chapel- the Newcomer's Orientation Dinner.  Lots of fun, got to mingle with friends and meet some new people.  Shortly after that, Jon decided that we should try a different chapel, so I turned in a resignation of sorts, if you can call it that for a volunteer position! :P

That Sunday we tried out Hovey Chapel, where Jon's battalion chaplain speaks.  It was pretty good!  We had a great time fellowshipping with the people there after church. 

3/5 We went to a birthday party for Calvin- it was their last big thing here, as they PCS'd back to the States shortly afterwards. 

I would just like to state for the record that I really dislike these horns!  Whoever thought it would be a great idea to pass them out to several children at once is insane!! :D

3-8- We took the kids to Little Prince Children's Restaurant.  My fave!  Why don't we have these in America??!?  I should franchise one when we get back.. lol. 

Can you tell he was excited?  He barely stopped long enough for me to snap this!  The food at this place is amazing- peach tea, pomogranate tea, chicken tomato pasta, alfredo, even the pizza is delicious!  And the hot chocolate... well, let's just say that the hot chocolate is responsible for a couple of my extra pounds

from this winter! :D  It is just THAT good. 

All for now, have kiddos to go take care of and a slightly crabby hubby. :D