The Force is Strong with This One

The Kid could hardly wait to dive head first into her Lego glory.  She and The Guy spent hours putting her new sets together this weekend.  Turned out pretty cool.

Here is the AT-TE Walker all finished and in its glory on the table.  About 20 minutes later The Kid broke the legs off, and it had to be reassembled.  LOL!

The Guy decided that Emokin Anakin was way too cool for school and a ride on the AT-TE.  This picture just doesn't do him justice at all.  You can feel his Legoland angst...HA!

There are about a nonillion little spaces for clones to hide out.

So we had a little dispute as to why Emokin Anakin was too cool to be in the AT-TE, but Ahsoka wasn't.  Still haven't solved that one...but the people aren't in there anymore since the leg incident...so we dropped it.

We call this droid "One Arm" (Kid calls him "Roger roger"), b/c he had a bit of an unfortunate incident...and natch, The Kid has no idea what happened.  HA!

We leave you now to your regularly scheduled internet surfing, as we return to our rampant nerdom.

On Spoons and Moments...

(Picture via someecards)

The dishes are washed, the kitchen clean, the bedrooms and bathrooms and kitchen vacuumed, and another load of the never ending laundry in the combo.  There is still a mountain of clean laundry to be folded...the final touches on our NEO paperwork needing updating for the upcoming Evac Exercise...Winter clothes to be packed away for the warm seasons...and dusting...there is always dusting...

But... The Guy and I made dinner together b/f he went to work, so we all had a nice family dinner, something we try to fit in everyday by adjusting the time if we need to.  I got a nap in today, so I am not so overwhelmingly exhausted that I can't sit up and enjoy that family time.  The Guy never complains about kicking in and sharing the housework, and The Kid is always good natured about doing her part as well.  The Guy is on the last day of his set, and we have a nice weekend all together.  The weather is warming and Spring is in full bloom here on the Peninsula, and rumor has it that a picnic in the family park is on the docket.

And now, even though I am low on spoons and there is still a (less daunting) mountain of clean laundry waiting I think I can find that one last spoon somewhere to enjoy some UNO w/ The Kid when she is finished showering.  There might even be a chapter of Alice in Wonderland in the future.

There always seems to be something that needs to be done, but there always seems to be time for those moments together.  Even when I am this exhausted and this much in pain, it is good to know that.  I am so incredibly blessed.

Aries Abound!

Happy Trip around the Sun Day to VBFitU!*

May this one be the best yet!

XOXOXO

Me!

*Picture shamelessly stolen from I have no idea where!

Some Random Photos

7th Birthday Edition!

(click to embiggen)

Everything Chocolate cupcake w/ chocolate ganache and Neapolitan ice cream!

Very Berry cupcake.

Let's see how much ice cream we can cram in our mouth at one time!

Then, for added fun, let's scream about the pursuant ice cream headache.  LOL!

That's our little punk of a Star Wars fanatic!  I wonder where she gets that stuff.  ;)

Happy Birthday, Kid.

Seven Years Ago Today...

the universe saw fit to bless me w/ the greatest thing that I have ever known.

Seven years ago today, Jason and VBFitU stayed w/ me, dropped their lives, and joined me as my life changed forever.

Seven years ago today I learned what love really is at the hands of people who supported me, and in the eyes of the most perfect person I have even laid eyes upon.

Seven years ago today my mother help my hand and cried tears of joy w/ me, and whispered reassurances that I was going to be just fine.

Seven years ago today I stepped forward on a new journey and never looked back w/ regret.  So thankful was I that this was my choice, to embrace wholeheartedly.

Thank you, Kid, for making the last seven years the best I have known so far.

*This was meant to be much longer, but somehow the files w/ my baby pictures has been corrupted.  :(  Luckily I still have some of the hospital pictures, b/c those are entirely irreplaceable.  Thanks, Jason, for preserving that for me.

Some Random Photos

An afternoon stroll:

We had to take a few things back to the PX (they were too small!), so we started out w/ a little fuel for the day (don't panic!  Kid's is only a chocolate creme!  No coffee!  Not even I am that nuts!).

We took a walk through Itaewon to do some "street shopping", checking out the countless vendors.  I got a great deal on something that will be mailed out as a gift, and even got to see my super smarty hubby show off his mad haggling skills.  It is pretty much expected that you will haggle w/ people in Itaewon, if not in most places here.

There are so many shops crammed into the charming and crowded streets, including this one that we drive past every day:

B/c South Korea (and I'd imagine much of the North, as well, even though I haven't seen it) is so mountainous it isn't uncommon for the streets to be "layered" for lack of a better term, meaning that you can turn off of one street and walk up a hill to another, and you can find some great things in these little "alleys".  Like the world's cutest cupcake bakery:

It's called "Life is a Cup of Cake", and I am embarrassed to say that I didn't get it at first read.  LOL!

Here are some stairs that lead b/t street levels:

(I also just liked the angle through the viewfinder in my camera).

This one I couldn't resist snapping:

I love that the streets are so quiet that you can just walk down them (also, there are no sidewalks on the inner streets).

And then here is the little hitch hiker that The Guy found on the back of my shirt:

I have a few more that I took today, but I haven't yet finished my collection of photos of Embassies and other Important People's buildings w/in walking distance from our house.  It is not a small number, so it will take a while!

Hope you enjoyed the photos!

And Happy Easter!

Some Random Photos

Our friend Brandon helped us out a huge heap by distracting The Kid so we could proceed w/ some clandestine operations, AKA, do some Birthday Shopping for a certain someone.  She things we were doing some boring PX shopping for household supplies, and she was more than happy to go to the parks and burn off some steam instead of coming w/ us.  Brandon, loving his awesome camera of awesomeness was happy to share the pictures he took today.

And now I am sharing them w/ you.  (Click to embiggen!)

Whirling on the tire swing, her favorite thing at the playground right now.

I like these last two, b/c it looks like she has first picked the dragon's nose...

...and is then disguted w/ what she finds.  LOL!  (OK, Brandon thought so too!  HA!)

We got all of our Birthday shopping finished, and it looks like she had a great time too!

(Thanks, Brandon!)

Spring has Sprung!

(All Photos are clickable for embiggenment and yoinking privileges, w/ proper credits given, natch.)

You can certainly tell when Spring has come to South Korea, b/c all of the gorgeous fruit trees are in bloom.  W/ the Seoul Cherry Blossom Festival right around the corner it is no surprise to me to see all of the gorgeous cherry trees in their full glory.  These are similar to the ones that my grandma has always grown in her yard (only happier, since they haven't had to battle my grandfather and his snowblower...LOL!).

We had to run errands up on the base today (and some clandestine activities, so thanks to our friend, Brandon, for occupying The Kid for us), so we had lots of opportunity for some pictures.  It really turns an Army base into a much happier place to run amok.  They are incredibly fragrant, especially the trees w/ the large cream colored flowers, which smell like cinnamon (we don't know what they are yet).

My favorite part is when the breeze blows through them making it appear as if there is a soft blush snow falling everywhere.  Kid even tried to catch the "flakes" as they swirled around her.  It is a big change from Hawai'i, having distinct seasonal markers like blossoming trees, rather than where things are always in bloom (which is gorgeous, but makes for high pollen all the time).  There was always some brightly colored "snow", from the crimson and orchid colored blooms.

Another thing that I didn't realize I missed was the smell of blooming lilac, another thing my grandmother always has in her yard.  I hate artificially scented lilac things, but the real thing is so pleasing to my nose (kind of like plumeria, which stinks in its artificial form, but the real thing is amazingly sweet and refreshing).

Hope that you are having a beautiful Spring!  For some of you, I hope it warms up (no more ice storms!)

Some Family Fun Time!

Kid is on Spring Break this week, and we decided to go out for this week's Family Game Night.  Kid wants to have her birthday party at the base bowling alley, but she had never been bowling before.  We thought it would be a good idea if we let her try it out b/f committing to that venue.  After we checked in and got our super cool shoes (I have secretly always wanted a pair of the red, white and blue bowling shoes for my very own) and the correct size and weight ball picked out we were off.

I like to tell people that I hate bowling, but I think I just prefer bowling w/ fun people.  I have been in years, and The Guy has only been a few times, and Kid never has been.  It seemed that we would have a nice even game.  LOL!

The Guy gave Kid a quick lesson on proper ball handling and trowing.  As light as her ball was I still almost had a heart attack at her wanting to lift if over her head.  Ha ha.  The first time she launched it down the alley it had almost no momentum, and the ball stopped about three feet from the end of the gutter!  The manager had to come rescue it from the alley so we could continue on!

After about two or three frames she finally managed to get it down close enough to the center to knock over some pins.  She was absolutely elated, and that pretty much sealed the deal for the party planning.  She is now officially a bowling fan.

We got in two games and a meal (b/c, what is bowling w/o some pizza and carbonated beverages?) b/f heading home.  I am guessing we are going to be making this a regular outing, since she was already begging to come back the next day.  If nothing else, we will definitely be the crazy people w/ about 20 kids there in a week and a half!  HA!

Until next time!  Thanks for sharing!

Decisions

So, I think Kid finally tired of us telling her to go get back into the shower and rewash her hair.  She hasn't yet mastered how to get your fingers to your scalp to get it clean, or how to condition the ends so they are easier to brush out.  She doesn't do a bad job, really, she just sometimes needs to get back in the shower and try it again.

So when I mentioned all us us needing to go in for trims she asked if she could cut her hair short again, like it used to be when it was really cute.  We asked her if that is what she really wanted, and told her that she had until we went to the PX to decide.  When we got there she promptly informed the nice beautician what she wanted done w/ her hair.  She even got to lie back and have her hair washed in the sink, a first for her, and something she thoroughly enjoyed.  Since she switched to showers from baths she doesn't need me to wash her hair for her any more, which is good b/c it helps her become more self sufficient.  She enjoys being able to do things for herself.

She told the stylist that she really wanted it to be cute and short enough that she could take care of it all on her own.  We were aiming for the cute cut she had in Kindergarten, but what we came away w/ is much better, and I think a little more grown up.  You can't really tell, but the back is layered just enough to give it a little bounce and for it to turn under on its own.  It is so very adorable on her, but these short cuts always are! 

We also recently decided that one night a week during The Guy's off set will be a family game night (family being a loose term, b/c we welcome other people to join us, but the point is for us to play something together).  We have been working on building up our game collection, and want to get The Kid a couple of her favorites, like Sorry! for her birthday, while we wait for the rest to arrive (we have a really fun game called Dread Pirate in our household goods, as well as Pop-o-matic Trouble, which are games she loves as well).  So we went ahead and picked up a deck of UNO cards (which is one of my favorite card games), b/c you can only play War and Go Fish so many times b/f you want to scream.  We played UNO for hours on Thursday night, since Spring Break started Friday.  She really enjoyed it, and it is also helping her learn about data (how to sort and group things in different ways, like by color or number) which is what they are studying at school.

Yesterday (Friday) we took her out to get some new clothes, b/c she refuses to stop growing.  We already had to manage new shoes for her, b/c the gym shoes she had just didn't fit anymore, and they were only about three months old.  We went back to the Dragon Hill Lodge for lunch at the Mexican Cantina there, and then to the PX.  We thought that as part of her birthday present we would let her choose some new clothes.  I can not believe how much she has grown in one year.  When she went to the Mainland from Hawai'i last summer she was wearing a 6X-7.  She came back and was wearing mostly 8s, but her school uniforms had to be 10s.  When we had to get winter clothes for leave in Iowa and Michigan, and for Korea as well, she had to have 10s, and Mediums in shirts.  Last week we noticed that a couple of pairs of her pants had her belly sticking a little over the front, so we tried on new pants.  We had to get her 12s.  We also let her pick out a shirt for each pair of pants, getting Mediums, and when we returned to our villa we discovered that we are going to have to return two of them for Larges.  Oy w/ the poodles already!  She just keeps growing!  LOL!  I also, based on the sizes she was trying on, picked out a very fun red dress for her, which has a skirt that poofs out due to the layers of netting under it.  

The PX was having a sale, so we got away pretty lucky.  Moving, and then having to live in a hotel here for almost a month and eating in restaurants three meals a day really strapped our budget at a time when we suddenly had considerably less money coming in.  We finally got our TLA reimbursement, so that was a timely blessing that we were able to use for her.  Since she refuses to stop growing.  ;)

Kid is on Spring Break this week, so on The Guy's next off-set we are going to go do some sight seeing.  We have plans to go to the Korean War Memorial, the Aquarium (w/ a subway ride!  Yay!), and possibly the zoo, since we heard it was really nice.  The Guy is going to get a tourist Passport so hopefully b/f Kid has to go the States this summer we can take a trip North to see some of the sights there.  There is a rare bird sanctuary in the DMZ, and rumor has it that the tours to Kaesong might have started up again.  Whatever we decide, you will be the first to see!

Kam-sa-ham-ni-da!