366 Project: Week Twenty-Four

We have been back in the States for a week now, and it has already been a wild ride. Car broke down. Renters won't leave. Baby doesn't sleep. To say we're in survival mode is an understatement. We're trying to figure out how we'll get to Texas in a few short weeks. Where we'll live once we arrive. What (specific) jobs we'll have when we get there. How we'll sell our house. When we'll work on it. When the renters will be ousted by the sheriff. All of this with little sleep and a kid who is struggling with all of the changes in his life. It ain't pretty. Nonetheless, here's a recap...

162/366: The "luggage shuffle" took us nearly an hour, but we made it to the bus stop with all 12 bags and 4 backpacks with 6 minutes to spare! And except for our grouchy bus driver who assumed we had other options for getting all of our bags to the airport, this was been one of the easiest airport trips ever. Our check-in was easier than ever, and we had plenty of time to run around and get energy out since our flight was delayed an hour. It was a pretty good flight, too, since we took off at bedtime and the kids slept for most of it!

163/366: Of course, we re-lived the 10th, which meant we had time for dinner with my family before we headed to Eric's mom's on the 11th. The drive was pretty stressful in our car that was barely running and without working phones, but we made it, and we enjoyed the blue skies!

164/366: Good riddance to this thing. It served its purpose by getting us and all of our stuff around last summer, but now it's time to go.

165/366: Poor Cade went much of the year with tennis shoes that were falling apart. It was bad. And embarrassing. We were all pretty excited to get the kids some new shoes!

166/366: This kid is still barely sleeping. Not sleeping by himself. Not napping well. Screaming when we try to put him down. Waking for hours in the middle of the night. So, it's been important to keep him moving outside in the evenings to get him a little closer to a reasonable bedtime. Especially if it means I have to go to bed with him. I'll be glad when this phase is over!

167/366: Eric, Reece, and I spent a long day driving up north to get Dad's truck so that we have something to drive for awhile. The day was full of extreme ups (a fun lunch and afternoon with Travis and Tasha!) and downs (showing up at our house to discover we're locked out). It ended with a drive (by myself!) under cotton candy clouds that I couldn't keep my eyes off and another night cuddled up with my toddler (who no longer sleeps unless he's touching me). Every day has its challenges, but we survived another one.

168/366: Thursday morning was spent stressing about my interview, only to find out that they were going to have to re-schedule. As it turned out, I was able to just take a call from the department head while everyone else headed down to Tolmie Beach. It was a good conversation, and now, aside from trying to get rid of the Expedition, we have a couple of days to relax before really getting to work on Monday. So, an afternoon at the beach was the perfect way to unwind. Followed by a growler from the local brewery, of course!

This week, we're fitting in some family time, as well as getting to work on the outside of the house, so some fun followed by a lot of work! We will certainly appreciate your continued prayers as we deal with everything!

366 Project: Week Twenty-Three

Okay, this is going to be a short one because, well, in less than 24 hours we will be on a plane...moving to another country. Our passport country, but still. And, I won't get any sleep tomorrow night with a toddler strapped to my chest and two bigger children to deal with, so I need to sleep well tonight!

155/366: Our end-of-school picnic. Shauna said we should get a picture together, and I'm so glad she did, because she may have been the only person that I took a picture with. Whoops. Best laid plans.

156/366: A shot of one of the local grocery stores with all of their produce outside on the street. I'm trying to remember the things that seemed strange at the beginning!

157/366: Day one of Japan! We literally walked right into a parade and festival when we went to find our hotel, so we strolled through that for a few hours before getting dinner at the brewery in the harbor just behind our capsule hotel. Pretty much couldn't have asked for a better day.

158/366: We packed it in on day two of our #Tokyotripfor2. Starbucks at Shibuya Crossing, Meiji Shrine, sushi and shopping in Harajuku, followed by the Tokyo skyline view and dinner in Shinjuku. Almost 19,000 steps and 9 miles. The girl was passed out by 9:00 again!

159/366: The day's original plans were thwarted by rain after our trip to Tokyo Tower and Zojoji Temple. We made do with lunch and shopping before heading to the airport for our return trip home. Eventually...maybe...you'll read the details of our trip!

160/366: The kids got in a few hours with our friends and neighbors at the playground before they left for the airport. It was a heart-wrenching final goodbye for them.

161/366: We spent our final day in Korea packing, cleaning, shutting off phones, and closing accounts. Then, we spent our evening strolling through our old beloved neighborhood and eating at our favorite Korean restaurant. It's hard to believe that our time in Korea has come to an end. The past five years have been been full of ups and downs, challenges and victories, and have changed us in more ways than we can count. I'm so thankful that God brought us to this place and these people for this time. Tomorrow, we return to 'Murica, and I'm excited and terrified at the same time.

366 Project: Week Twenty-Two

There are no words at this point in this particular week. We're all tired. Emotionally and physically. And so...

148/366: We began (ended?) our week with a little "reunion" dinner with our original Lost group. Remember how we had dinner and watched Lost with this group our first two years here? Well, since then, we've done a terrible job of all getting together at the same time in the same place. They've all been over for dinner a couple of times this year, but we decided we needed to have them all over at the same time one last time.

149/366: Saturday night was the YISS Mom's annual "goodbye" get-together. It has evolved over the years from coffee shops to brunch to dessert. These evenings are always emotionally draining, but so needed on the road to ending well. I've spent years fearing my time on this "stage" (it's so awkward to sit and cry while a room full of women tell you why they will miss you!), but I survived the spotlight--exhaustaed but relieved. It's so hard to imagine not seeing some of them regularly. Expat bonds run deep, which makes this life a great one but such a hard one come June.

150/366: Sunday was our last Sunday at church because Kennedy and I will be in Japan this coming Sunday. Again, it's a little awkward because our church has a long tradition of praying for those who are leaving on their last Sunday in Korea. But again, we survived, and then did all of the small talk afterwards at the church picnic. After the picnic, Eric and Cade were off to a goodbye party while Kennedy, Reece, and I headed home and worked on notes for friends. Gah. So many emotions all the time.

151/366: Monday was Cade's end-of-year class party. As a classroom teacher who enjoys structure and organization, the elementary classroom party drives me mad. So much chaos. So much noise. So many kids with nothing to do. But, I've never been willing to be the one to organize these things, so props to the mom who is. And mad props to the elementary teacher who puts up with it! I was happy to show up late and leave early! (And of course, there's another one coming!)

152/366: I spent the morning watching Cade receive his Honor Code award and Kennedy play with her classmates at the 3rd grade class party. All while chasing a toddler, of course. Even after spending all morning at school, Reece was a trooper and waited until we got home (actually in the apartment this time, as opposed to the two previous days) to fall asleep in his crib. It was a busy week for him!

153/366: The last day of school was a roller coaster of emotions: elation at the end of another great school year and the start of summer, broken-hearted as goodbyes began in earnest to classmates and students, and then a whole lot of laughter as we ended the night with dinner and noraebang with great friends. This transition has been so much more physically and emotionally exhausting than I ever could have expected, but I'm so grateful for the fact that it means we've built unforgettable relationships in our time here. Here's to #endingwell and #startingstrong.

154/366: I feel an obligation to include a shot of Reece because you haven't seen or heard much about him recently. I'm spending the moments that I'm not packing with my pinky in his mouth as those canines make their way through. He has been talking a lot more ("more" being his new favorite), but not eating or sleeping well this week with those teeth bothering him. I had a feeling that they would start to rear their pearly heads just as we started getting ready to board another plane. It just seems to happen that way!

And now that the obligatory weekly blog post is done, I'm going to relax for a bit before I fall fast asleep because this week has been utterly exhausting and tomorrow is the mother-of-all goodbyes--the last gathering before everyone takes off for the summer--which means a whole lot more tears are coming. 

366 Project: Week Twenty-One

Well, I have 10 days until I need to have our entire lives packed into a number (still undetermined, thanks to difficult airlines) of suitcases and bins. We got rid of some big things this week, which helps me feel like I'm making some progress, though I'm not. Today is my first day of the week to actually be home to get some packing done, and here I sit blogging. I'd better get this done, so I can get back to work!

141/366: Of course I got some shots of the girl actually singing in her concert, but the shots I got of her and her friend, Ella, were way more fun. Our Friday night was a little crazy with Kennedy's concert and the 8th Grade Gala. Our friend got hurt playing basketball, so his whole family was in for the night, and they let us borrow their car to get to school and back. That was a huge help with everything going on, but we were actually pretty lucky because at least our events were on campus and none of us had to spend the night!

142/366: Kennedy's first swim meet was on Saturday, which meant the two of us spent most of the day there. It was actually a lot of fun, and of course, we were so proud of her! I have lots more pictures to share, so hopefully I'll get around to that at some point.

143/366: On Sunday, we took our down day seriously. With such a busy week finally behind us, we spent Sunday working on getting some packing done and spending time as a family. The weather was beautiful and the clear skies are greatly missed at this point.

144/366: Yet another last on Monday, this being one that I'm going to miss more than words can say. The monthly YISS Moms' outings have always been one of my favorites. I've gone through several stages of them over the past 5 years (the '13-'14 school year being the only year I couldn't participate at all). Our first year here, I brought both kids when my school schedule allowed it (rarely). My second year, I just brought Cade, again when my schedule allowed (more frequently). The past two years, I've just had Reece while the older two have been in school, and even though he hasn't always benefited, it's always good for me to get out of the house and hang with other women. The group has morphed significantly over the years, too--different moms and different kids (in fact, only one of these kids was born when we arrived!). I'm not even going to start on how much I've loved doing life with these ladies and their kids, but I will say that it's hard to imagine a future without seeing them on a regular basis.

145/366: Tuesday was a bit rough. I went on Kennedy's last field trip--it wasn't a great one. The trip to school in the pouring down rain was a little tough once I discovered that there were about 10 other people also waiting for taxis at our intersection. I headed for the bus--which of course was packed--so I arrived at my stop at the same time I was supposed to be in the school lobby. Thankfully, I was only about 5 minutes behind schedule, but then my lunch bag ripped in the middle of the street (a paper Starbucks bag does not make a good lunch bag when it's raining!). A friend was there to help me rescue the contents the first time, but the second time around, I had no help and was walking up a steep hill, so most of my lunch contents were lost down the road. The field trip itself ended up being all in Korean, so I had no idea what was going on most of the time (nor did about half the kids), and Reece was not loving it. In the afternoon, I was home long enough to clean up the house and prep dinner for the babysitter and then I was off to meet Eric for the SIP dinner in Itaewon. Thankfully, the day ended much better than it started, but these were two lasts that I won't miss!

146/366: Wednesday was much more relaxed as I didn't have to go to school until the afternoon to watch Cade's last swim lesson. He's made such huge leaps in the last two years in the pool. When he started, he would crouch in the corner of the pool, pretty much hating the water. He's not quite swimming across the pool yet, but he's making progress! After swim, I went to my last Zumba class; I'm going to miss looking like a crazy person dancing with those ladies!

147/366: This week has been kind of depressing, I'll admit. Part of it is bad news from home, part of it is being so close yet still so far away from the end. But, I think a big part of it is this nasty air that we've had. Sure, last week was hot--about 90 degrees every day, but I'll take multiple showers every day over 80 degrees with stagnant hazy air. It's still hot, but now we don't even have cool evening breezes, and if we did, we couldn't open the windows. I'm SO ready to be done with the nasty air!

And now, I must get back to work! This stuff isn't going to pack itself!

366 Project: Week Twenty

I think I already mentioned last week that emotions were running high, and I can promise nothing has eased in that department this week. Even Cade cried this week--for the first time admitting that maybe he doesn't want to leave Korea. I had to say goodbye to a good friend on Sunday, and then there was the first of many farewell speeches at the end of Cade's concert on Tuesday that had us all in tears. It feels too early to start this stuff still, but I suppose if we left it all for the last week, then things would be pretty ugly.

134/366: Friday was a long day because Eric went glamping after school, but it was nice to have clear blue skies, perfect temperatures, and kids in good moods. Kennedy was a huge help--doing both the dinner and breakfast dishes (I did have to redeem a mom's day coupon, but it was worth it!)--and both boys were pretty good, too.

135/366: Saturday was another big last: the International Bazaar. Full of some of our favorite people and our favorite foods, we are always amazed at the size and intensity of this event. This year, I had a Japanese pancake, an Uzbek stir fry, Turkish ice cream, and a Thai iced tea (but that's only because I refused to have Indian for the 2nd this week--it's usually my go-to!). We are going to miss this!

136/366: It's a real shocker as to why this place was on Kennedy's #bucketlist. Chocolate chip French toast is always her first choice at Suji's Deli. We had to say goodbye to friends from church who are PCSing, which wasn't much fun, so comfort food seemed like a good idea.

137/366:  I'm going to say that these Cranberry Ginger granola bars were #eatingdown success. They depleted the rolled oats, the flax seed, the crystallized ginger, the almonds, cranberries, and the last sheet of parchment (which may or may not be stuck to the bottom--oops!). It does leave me feeling a little better about my pantry, and they taste good, too!

138/366: I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with the kids' concerts (which is funny because that's what Ms. Weir posted on IG after the concert ended, too!). I hate that we show up 30 minutes early, but immediately upon arrival feel late because the line for seats is out the door. I hate leaving the house feeling like I'm dressed up (appropriately) for the event and then arrive to find every mom dressed in heels and hose. I hate that I'm just proud of myself for getting us all dressed, fed, and out of the house on time, and then walk in the door and remember that every other parent has done those things, AND had time to stop and pick up a bouquet for their little singer. But, then the lights go down, the music starts, the kids file in, they start singing, and I'm in tears because their little voices are just precious and they're the cutest things ever. And this music teacher is one the most amazing teachers our kids have ever been blessed to have. She puts together incredible concerts and has over 150 little 1st and 2nd graders clapping, snapping, and singing in perfect time, and it's so impressive!

139/366: Matching girls playing at the playground. Mika is in first grade with Cade, but she has a little brother in Kindergarten, so having them as neighbors has made it easy for all of them to play together. They have all grown pretty close this year, and it's going to be tough to tear them apart in about three weeks.

140/366: Field day! These two were so excited that they picked out all of their blue clothes the night before, and then they were up and out of bed 10 minutes before I normally wake them up. It was a bit hot--a high of 90 (and now, at 7:15, it's only down to 80)--but they still had a lot of fun and managed to come home without a sunburn. They were ready for bed early tonight, though!

Tomorrow will be pretty crazy with Cade going on his final field trip, Eric going to the 8th Grade Gala, and Kennedy having her concert (at least they're on the same campus!). Saturday, Kennedy has her first swim meet, so we're excited, but it's a long day. Next week might be slightly less busy since we don't have any concerts; we just have other plans every night of the week. This whole "ending well" thing is tough, but it's worth it. And now, I'm going to take advantage of some down time to relax!

366 Project: Week Nineteen

We had a great visit with Nancy and Michael (lots more pictures to come from that!), and we've hit a few more major milestones in the countdown. We have less than a month to go, so we're shedding stuff like crazy, and life is beginning to feel a little uncomfortable as our ordinary conveniences are passed onto others. Maybe all of this discomfort will help the last month fly by? Hmmm...seems unlikely! I am feeling more and more thankful that I decided to do this project, so that I have the motivation to actually take all of the pictures that can seem silly or mundane, and actually record them here. Sorry if it's a bit boring for y'all!

127/366: Cheater day. It rained all day, and Kennedy was sick all morning. Eric, Cade, Michael, and Nancy went to the school "picnic" that had to be moved into the cafeteria because of the rain. We had planned to go on an afternoon bike ride after the softball game that usually happens after the picnic. Our plans started a bit off when Kennedy woke up with an earache and ended up throwing up. Then, it rained through the picnic, and we ended up hanging out playing games. Nancy and I headed out in the afternoon to get coffee at Fazenda, but I forgot to take a picture of that, so I'm using the picture I took the day before at Peer Coffee (another bucket list stop for me! It was delicious, but it's expensive and inconvenient, so I doubt I'll make it back.). My one picture from that day is an awkward one of Reece changing that one of the kids took.

128/366: No danger of a lack of pictures of our trip to Nami Island on Saturday, though. I took pictures all day long on one of my major bucket list trips. Not somewhere I would need to go back to, but at least now I won't wonder whether I missed the most amazing place in Korea!

129/366: On Sunday, we took off on a Mother's Day hike out in Gwacheon where Eric used to play baseball. Most of our hike was not actually on Gwanaksan, but we had some pretty views of it, nonetheless.

130/366: I spent Sunday night doing the packing dance, as Michael was taking back three 70 pound bags for us. Thankfully, I had done a lot of prep work and had most of the stuff stashed away already, but there's still that final pack--making sure that everything is full so nothing moves, the breakables are properly packed, and the weight limits have been met but not exceeded. It was quite a show. He took off Monday afternoon, after a quick ride to the airport bus, because it didn't seem fair to make him do the luggage shuffle that we do when it was our bags!

131/366: It rained most of the morning, so the plants were looking lush with raindrops on them when I went to pick Cade up from the bus stop. I couldn't help but take a picture, and since it was exactly one month from the day we fly out, a quote seemed appropriate. At this point, this is the kind of reminder I need because the alternative is curl up into a ball and cry.

132/366: We had to get rid of the car this week in order to avoid paying the hefty fees for vehicle inspection and insurance, so Reece and I made (hopefully) our last trip to Emart. Unfortunately, I didn't remember until late in the day that we're probably still going to have to make a trip to iPark to get Kennedy some pants or a skirt for her concert next week. Wish I'd done that before we got rid of the car!

133/366: And some days, you just gotta have fun. Without a car, our lives will be considerably more homeward bound, but this kid often finds himself needing to get out of the house in the afternoon. So, we walked a few laps around the playground to get in some exercise, and then he took several laps up the stairs and down the slide to get some energy out.

Tonight, we got rid of another load of stuff for the Seoul Swap on Saturday, so after nearly 10 boxes last weekend, plus three suitcases back to the States, we're feeling like the load is lightened a bit. Most of what we have around now will be either delivered or thrown away in the next couple of weeks as we finally start to figure out suitcases for the final pack. It should be interesting! We have another busy weekend ahead of us with Eric going glamping with friends tomorrow night and the International Bazaar on Saturday. With any luck, we'll have some time to relax on Sunday, because I think we're ready for it!

366 Project: Week Eighteen

It's crazy that we can continue to have lasts every single week. Do we even do that many different things? That we can do them all for the last time? I dunno. Our major last for this week is having our last visitors. It's definitely all down hill from here with just over a month left to go!

119/366: This guy. He's had a cold this week, and he's been a little cranky at times. He actually really enjoyed this morning bath (it's rare that he gets the bath all to himself!), but in the time it took me to grab my camera, his 'tude changed, and this is what I ended up with.

120/366: The big kids and I spent Saturday at the end of the soccer tournament (a torturous game to watch that ended in a loss after overtime and a shootout). Since we didn't stick around to watch the awards, I ended up with pictures of the azaleas at school. I have enough pictures of those soccer players, anyway.

121/366: Eric and the kids did their last homeless ministry while Crankypants and I headed home for a nap. On their way home, they picked up some flowers for me for May Day.

122/366: Reece and I did some cleaning up in preparation for Michael and Nancy's arrival. This is his version of cleaning up. Haha. Most of these are toys that we will be passing onto friends in the next couple of weeks, but capturing a shot of them made me feel a little better.

123/366: On Tuesday, Michael and Nancy arrived, but it was pretty late. Reece and I headed to Emart in the morning to pick up a few necessities. I felt a sudden compulsion to capture the "packaging station" at the store. These little stations used to make me sweat when we first arrived. They're usually pretty busy, and the idea of putting together a cardboard box and loading all of my groceries into it, and then finding a taxi (or getting on the bus) with two little kids was just too much once upon a time. Thankfully, it's just part of the routine now.

124/366: One of my bucket list items has been to visit the National Museum of Contemporary Korean History because it has the longest museum name known to man. Haha. No, I've just always wanted to take a night view shot of one of the palaces (or gates as they're called) , and this museum provides a rooftop view of one of the biggest palaces. I figured that with Nancy and Michael here, it would be a good chance to go check it out. It's definitely one of those touristy-worth-seeing things, but it's got the I'm-here-with-a-local feeling. I was up there for awhile trying to get everything just right--light streaks from the moving cars as well as the colors in the sky and the lit palace--so they had some time to peruse the museum for a bit, as well.

125/366: We've been taking them on the world food tour, which basically means all of my favorite restaurants that we get to go to one last time before we leave. And, of course, no world food tour in Korea would be complete without galbi and bibimbap!

Kennedy woke up sick this morning with an earache and ended up throwing up, so we're sitting here relaxing while Reece naps and Eric, Cade, Michael, and Nancy headed to school for the annual staff picnic. They also loaded up the school van with boxes and plants and drying racks to get rid of at the school rummage swap, so I'm feeling a little better about the amount of stuff around here. But, I'm starving and looking forward to their return, so I can finally celebrate Cinco de Mayo (one of my fave holidays) on May 6 with a little On the Border! (Look at us hitting another country on our world food tour!)

366 Project: Week Seventeen

Week seventeen of fifty-two? Are you fo' real? I've barely even made a dent in this thing! Although, I will say that it's a whole lot easier to remember to take a photo now, at the end of April, than it was a couple of months ago. Unfortunately, though, this week there are a whole lot of iPhone snaps. Whatyagonnado? The best camera is the one you have with you, and while I thought about bringing the big camera a couple of times this week, I probably wouldn't have used it anyway. The iPhone is the more inconspicuous way to go.

113/366: When it comes to an inconspicuous shutter noise, the big camera is the way to go since you can't silence the shutter on a Korean iPhone. Nonetheless, the minute he heard the camera, the quiet, peaceful moment was over. He was done reading and off to get himself into more trouble!

114/366: We spent Saturday morning at the Awana games on base. Cade wasn't sure that he wanted to go; he was afraid all of that running would make his tooth hurt, but five minutes into it, he'd forgotten all about that tooth!

115/366: Sunday night, we had dinner on a friend's rooftop to celebrate another friend's birthday. As always, we were the only ones who brought kids, but our kids like to mix it up with the adults. It was a beautiful night for a dance party on the rooftop! (photo cred goes to Eric; apparently he's wanting the recognition now!)

116/366: On Monday, I was all about the "eating down," so I made a vegetable barley stew (which only made a slight dent in the barley and cost a lot in vegetables = eating down failure), so I also made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies (made a good dent in the oatmeal and the chocolate chips = eating down success!).

117/366: We had friends over for dinner on Tuesday night, which was a ton of fun because they're hilarious, but with a baby and two toddlers (plus the big kids), it's always a little crazy. I remembered to load them up with LOTS of things they may or may not need, but I did not remember to take a picture. I did, however, remember to take a picture of the glorious spring day we were having on my walk to the grocery store. It was 85 on Tuesday! Woot!

118/366: Because we've lived in this neighborhood and complex for such a short time, I'm finding myself putting in some effort to document it. That's the side view of our building.

119/366: On Thursday, Reece and I took what I hope will be our last trip to the hospital here. He needed one last vaccination before we leave (since I opted out of the Japanese Encephalitis vaccine). Actually his next vaccine is due the day we fly out, so that's convenient, right? Anyway, I have hated nearly every trip to this hospital, because even after all of this time, it just doesn't all make sense to me. Why can't my baby and I just stay put and have everyone come to me like I'm used to, instead of us running around, forgetting where to go and in what order to do everything? Yet strangely, as I left today with official immunization records in hand, I found myself getting a little misty-eyed leaving the hospital where my baby was born, never to return again. Explain that one to me, will ya?

This weekend, we'll be heading to KAIAC soccer games, as our school is hosting the girls' soccer tournament, and my friend that I used to coach with is in town. We'll also be going to a middle school dinner, doing homeless ministry on Sunday and trying to get the house cleaned up and cleaned out for Nancy and Michael to get here on Wednesday and the school rummage swap on Friday. Things will no doubt be a little quieter here next week with company in town, but I'm going to try and get Reece's 15-18 month post done before that completely escapes me as we enter Crazy Town (otherwise known as May!). Hope y'all are having a great week!