Bangs on a Train

 

Why Every Kid Needs an iPhone

Gather Them Close

Today we skipped school to have an adventure.

First stop beef bowls at "The Triangle Place" a favorite little restaurant just out the back gate.  Frankie's a chopsticks wiz-kid and the other two got jealous.  This morning everyone finally got it.    Yes! (School, who needs it?)

Next up was "Toy Alley" and home again to paint new paper masks, then on to Hapkido, naps in the taxi, Kebabs in Itaewon, and enough time for stories before bed.

Bonus: Found a "Magic Flower" candle tucked away in a dusty little shop.  Can't wait to see it in action at Frankie's birthday next month.

Kimchi, It's What's for Lunch.

Korean food is really a) delicious, b) healthy, c) inexpensive. We eat it everyday.

 She likes it, she likes it!

 Top row (left to right): Spinach kimchi, rice noodles, cabbage kimchi, sea weed, fish-flavored tofu.

Middle row: Bulgogi (marinated beef and peppers), fried eggs, more kimchi, something hella spicy--I think it's red pepper kimchi.

Bottom row: rice and two spicy potato soups.

 Surprise!  There's a fish in your cabbage.

Seaweed "chips" for dessert.

Blogging Can Be Fun!

I was real sick and tired of this blog.  So tired in fact that I decided to shut 'er down, just as soon as I'd bound it all up in a blog book.  Then a funny thing happened.  I was sorting through old posts to decide what should make the cut and  remembered blogging can be fun!  I think I'll keep at it.  At least a little longer.

If you're waiting for new pictures.  Stop.  I haven't taken them.  Or, I have but I've already posted them on Facebook.  Either way, you won't find them here.  Maybe we should be FB friends!

Actually, I do have one.

Super Girl has a new house

Our new house is rad.  4 beds/3 baths and the biggest kitchen in Seoul.  Ok.  It's just the biggest kitchen until you get our next door neighbor's identical kitchen. Still.

I love this place.  And by that I mean Seoul, but let's just talk about our apartment for now.  It is totally Asian--wood trim, weird light fixtures, and pink tile everywhere.  Not to mention the fanciest ugliest green couch around. More on the couch to come, I'm sure.

We got lucky enough to be on the light side of the building so things are sunny all the time--just the way I like it. The walls are white-washed cement and nearly impossible to keep clean.  The Bigler Wall of Fame is coming back full force.  I think I might go ahead and cover every square inch of this place with photos.  I'd like that.

We're right in the heart of Hannam and only minutes away from the Han.  Google it.

Nate and I have been running every morning.  So far as I can tell Koreans aren't really big on early morning exercise so usually it's just me, my man, and a great big shiny river with pink clouds on the horizon.  One morning someone was flying a red kite about a million miles high.  I was on top of the world.

I know about ten words in Korean.  Here they are (spelled phoenetically by me):
*Annyeong Haseyo- Hi there!
*Kamsamnida- Thank you
*Juseyo- Please
*Mul- Water
*Duc- Rice
*Samjang- Red bean paste
*So- Cow
*Yumso- Goat
*Ori- Duck
*Neh- Yes
*Aniyo- No
*Oma- Mama
*Appa- Daddy
*Ajima- Granny
*Erin Im Nee Da- My name is Erin

I just asked Nate "What words do we know in Korean?"

He said "....im nee da."

I said "I already put that."

He said "that's about it."

It's not going to be nearly as easy to learn Korean here as we'd hoped.  It's not that we thought Korean would be easy.  We just thought we'd be fully immersed in it.  We were wrong.  Living in military housing means that we enjoy our own mini-America.  So we will just have to work a little harder to get to know the real Seoul.  We're up for it.

Now let me tell you about how great everything else is!

Nate loves his job.  Loves it.  Isn't that the best?

Natalie is about to turn 18 and got a motorcyle for her birthday.  She can take her Korean driver's license test  in about 2 weeks but we got her bike a little early so she could practice riding in the parking lot.  Good things come to those who babysit!

Jensie's class only has 9 students.  N-I-N-E, can you believe it?  She is a third grade champ.  I'm pretty sure she is the world's best writer, with the world's worst penmanship.  Her teacher says she doesn't care about penmanship, so now, I don't care either.

Asher's Kindergarten teacher is an angel. Seriously.  God sent her to Earth just to teach my son. Their first field trip is only a few weeks away (it's not like we're counting).  They're going to a Korean sweet potato farm.  Nate signed up to chaperone so he could learn a few tricks of the trade.

Frankie is a little girl trying to learn to be a big girl.  She hates walking around this great big city.  She asks everyday if we can buy another car.  When we arrive at our destination, after thousands of tearful baby steps, she exclaims "Look!  I love walking now."  *Giggle, giggle.  She forced us to enroll her in preschool and she never complains about getting up early to make it school on time.  She goes to ballet and is very good at it.  Her teacher, a strict Korean woman, dotes on her and bought her an ice cream once just because she's beautiful.

And me?  Well you know.  Same old, same old.

Halloween

Costumes have been demanded.  The kids will be...

Jensie: Po (red TeleTubby)

Asher: Indiana Jones

Frankie: a strawberry

Woot woot!

Exploring

We bought a heaping plate of bulgogi for the family to share, but Asher claimed it all for himself.  Nate bet him 20,000 won (about $20)  that he couldn't finish it all, but Asher licked his bowl clean.  Nate paid up, on the condition that Asher spend it all on new street foods while we're out in the city. His first purchase? This dried rice tortilla-looking thing. We all guessed it might be sweet or salty, some sort of snack.  But no.  It was just rock solid, break-your-teeth-off, unseasoned, white rice. Fail!

Jensie Lissette, 3rd Grader

Wasatch

Our family in the mountains

Photos by Ashley Thalman Photography

July 2011

Flashback Friday

My mind is blown. KA-BOOM.

This was taken Jensie's first day of Pre-K.  Since when do they let little tiny babies go to school?  Secondly, that pretty baby girl turns eight tomorrow.  How in the world?

Public Service Announcement

Jensie and Asher have asked me to let you know they have updated their blogs and are waiting for comments.

Mud

Yahoos. Orem, Utah. July

Today's the Day

We are moving into our new apartment this morning.  We walked through it on Friday and it's awesome. We're gonna fill it up with free government issued furniture and it's gonna be the best. Once we get our internet there the blog'll be up and running again! 

Seoul Grand Park Zoo & New Friends

Line 4 to Seoul Grand Park.  We've got this subway thing down!  Nevermind the fact that, as Nate says, "it's the easiest thing in the world."

Rowdy boys are a concern to the locals.

I don't know who the Sedowicks are, but their mural sure is lovely.

Baby turtle Asher.  Awwwww.

Frankie's gotta keep her new scar out of the sun for 8 months.  If you find a little hat that doesn't have a picture of Dora on it, send it my way would ya?

At the Dolphin & Sealion show ala Sea World.  Ignore the fact that I neglected to photograph said dolphins.  Or any zoo animals for that matter. 

We ventured to the zoo with some new friends we made at the hotel.  Our first trip there was fun, but exhausting.  The Seoul Grand Park is huge and the zoo is probably a mile or so into it.  We didn't know a tram ran to and from the entrance so we hiked the kids in on the sunniest day we've had yet.  We had time to see  about four exhibits and the dolphin show, before the kids declared themselves exhausted and refused to walk any further.

We went back a couple days later with Nate and Nat (yes, I sometimes get their names confused, and yes, they hate it), and this time we did everything right.  We rode the tram to the entrance.  Bought tickets to the sky-lift and were air lifted to the top of the zoo where we worked our way down through the animals.

Our favorites were the enormous Stellar Sealions, a pacing Siberian Tiger, the baby animal nursery, and the goofy Orangutans.  I've got a feeling the zoo will become a favorite Saturday afternoon destination.  We love Korea!

Oooooh Barracuda

 Jensie made the swim team!  She's a Yongsan Barracuda.  

Practice starts at 5:30 am.  Everyday.
Her first morning she said "When it swims it feels like I'm flying!"

then she said "and I pretend I'm really playing Quidditch."

which explains why she kept bumping into the lane dividers and forgot about her kick-board.
This Saturday is her first meet.  She's swimming the 50m Freestyle and 50m Breaststroke.  Hurray!