and we are off....

the adventure begins....

the packing has commenced....

such a process it is for us. paul just throws his stuff in a bag, but i am a pile maker. i make lots of piles and sort through what i think needs to go and what must go. i started a few days ago after ms. lee came on thursday. i did it so i would not wear any of the clothes i want to take with. she did the laundry, so i made a pile of clothes. then i make piles of the other things---books, camera gear, crochet project, gifts and other things for folks, stuff i want to take, etc. then we have to charge all of the electronics as well. gosh, we have so many. i don't realize how spoiled we are until we go to charge everything---camera battery, iPods, nintendo DS, palm pilot, korean cell phones. man, there is so much to do. paul has been working on his travel entertainment---downloading games for his DS via the R4. he has been pretty excited about some of the games he has found.

once we have sorted ourselves out then we move on to the house. we clean out the fridge, put coats into the closet inside the house from the entryway, and move shoes. with the humidity here we also have to put out these deals called hippos. they are small plastic boxes that have some material in them that absorb moisture from the air. they have pebble like stuff inside and when we come back in august they are fill of liquid. they work and everyone puts them all over their houses---in closets, in drawers, on shelves, all around---i am sure you get the idea. we are going to unplug stuff too. just overall preparing the house to not be lived in for five and a half weeks. ms. lee will still come and check in.....clean up......make sure all is ok. we pay her through the summer even though we aren't here. some people leave a crazy list for their adjuma to work on over the summer---clean the curtains, windows, clean out this and that. personally, paul and i aren't demanding. we don't mind that she has a lighter load. i am just happy to have her and that she cleans what she does. we are so laidback adn flexible.

we also have to move the litter box for the kitties. we are closing the door to the office and bedroom this summer as they were upset with us last summer and decided to pee on the mattress. eeewww, i know. so we are prepared to "fight" back this year........no access to the bedroom. ah ha! we are so smart and witty. we are paying a lady to come in and feed them. her name is diana and she actually lives on campus with the pastor of seoul union church. her name is diana. she also will feed the fish, "streaker".

yes, i said fish. we now are the parents of a fish....we adopted him from our friend isaac mills before they left. they weren't sure what to do with him, and i thought i would help out. streaker was a gift to isaac for his birthday. although he did have other friends in the tank, none of them seemed able to survive for unknown reasons. i do have to say that isaac was quite pleased to know i would adopt him and care for him. i plan to take him to the classroom in the fall. i am praying that sam and india don't plan an escape for streaker while we are away. we have strategically moved furniture to make it more difficult to get on the counter. streaker's small tank does have a secure lid also which should keep them away. sam and india do fancy sitting and watching him swim around. we have had to intervene with the squirt bottle when they get too close. we don't want to freak out streaker with a bit cat staring at him.

we are working on the packing......it is such a joy. we leave monday morning..........we should be on the airport bus at 11:00 or so. yippee. i will be happy to be on the bus and ready for the next adventure of the summer.

lazy days....

i am having one today. these are essential to a great holiday in my opinion. i wake up when i want, stay in my pajamas most of the day, and do a lot of nothing. just be at home and love it. paul and i have been out most of the days this week, so i was ready for a lazy day. we only have two more days in seoul before we are bound for the states.

tomorrow will be a day of last minute errands. sunday we plan to stay home to pack and prepare the house for the time we are away. then monday morning we are on our way......the adventure begins.

it is hard to believe that we have not been to houston or america in a whole year. i am looking forward to the visit and getting to see family and friends. i know houston is going to be different from the last time we were there. i am looking forward to going to church and hanging out. eating at some of our favorite places and getting to shop at favorite spots too. i do have a list, but will make sure to soak up the time at home. surround myself with folks i love and catch up on their lives.

18 more days until....

i am in houston for the holiday. i am looking forward to visiting with family and friends. it will be great to catch up with folks, hang out, relax, and do some shopping. i am also sad though. i have had a hard week of goodbyes. some of my close friends here in korea have left this year for new adventures. the mills family is returning to their home in northern england and vicki is going on a world race mission trip where she will travel 11 countries in 11 months. i know that God has plans for each and every one of these folks as they move on, but it makes things sad for me. i don't want to be the "don't leave me" friend because i know that God has a bigger and amazing plan for them, but part of me does want to be that friend. i realize that just because i move or they move does not mean that our friendships have to stop. i have learned about this since i left home and moved overseas. i have struggled with life continuing on without me in houston.....my friends go through things i want to be there for. argh. i just keep praying that God will do His thing---comfort my heart, comfort their hearts, and keep us all in touch. i have to trust God knows best, even though i struggle to find peace in saying goodbye.....it's not goodbye, but see you soon!!!

gotta love the heat, humidity and the mosquitoes...

yes, summer has begun in korea. so much fun. i have been spending much time sleeping recovering from a long year of teaching. i also have been spending time with friends who are leaving korea for either the summer or for good to begin new adventures. life has been good so far.

i think i have figured out that i cannot drink caffeine anymore as it upsets my stomach. i am currently avoiding it to see if that truly is the culprit. we have been killing lots of mosquitoes lately which stinks. they usually attack when i am sleeping and buzz in my ear which is really annoying. i give a yell and paul appears with the bug zapper in hand. many times we find the mosquito, but sometimes we don't. argh. this morning i have a bite my thumb. odd place for a bite and kind of annoying to be honest, but i have applied some itch cream and hope it works soon.

we are also getting ready for the trip to the states.......the closer it gets the more excited i become. i do have to admit though that i am a bit worried about going back. nothing major, just worry about being completely overwhelemed with choices at the store and such. i know this seems weird to those of you who have never lived abroad, but it does worry me a little. i am sure i will be fine. i do have a list of things we must import back to korea. it gets shorter each year that i am here........paul is great at finding things we like to use here. i am sure there will be last minute impulse imports. i am going to try really hard to stick to the list though. :)

wow....how time flies....

today i am celebrating the end of yet another school year. today was the last day of school for the kids and it was great. we had some fun times together this year and i was sad to see them go. i have one student who will not be returning to SFS in the fall, but will go home to Israel. i will miss her dearly and hope to stay in touch with her. i also pray for the safety of her family as they return to a country that is not at peace. i pray that she will find comfort and peace in her new school and rekindling friendships as she returns after being away for three years. it was a bitter sweet day!

on another note, i also realized that i have just completed my fifth year of full time teaching....crazy! it seems like yesterday that i graduated from university and was beginning. each day that i teach i still feel new at it. there are so many challenges with each group of kids that the "tricks" have to be constantly adjusted to fit where they are and their needs. i guess that is part of the excitement of teaching.....nothing is always is the same.

i am looking forward to a restful summer to recharge for the next year. teaching is great, but it does drain a person on all levels---physically, emotionally, spiritually, mentally. it is so crucial for the break so that teachers can regroup, restore, recuperate, rest, and relax.

here's to another great year of teaching!!! :)

it's finished....

the last set of report cards for this school year and i manageed to finish with 3 hours 45 minutes to go. go me! it is such a relief to have them done. earlier this evening when i began i was pondering what would be better----writing report cards or puking my guts out? it is hard to decide. i know that i can list many other things i would rather do than write reports. i love my job and the kids, but by far writing reports is the part of my job that i dislike the most. so tedious and monotonous.....ugh!

no more for about another 4 months, 2 weeks, and 3 days........

yes, i did figure it out on the calendar.....i am already not looking forward to them. yuk!

My nephew, Josh, is in China....

singing!!! He is there with the Houston Children's Chorus. He flew into Shanghai on Thursday and is spending the next few days in Beijing before traveling back to Shanghai. So far they have totally done it up right. Temple of Heaven with an impromptu concert in front of the temple, then they went to see the Chinese Acrobatic Theater. They hiked the Great Wall and visited with some kids at Sun Village. It sounds great and I am so excited for his adventures there.

Here are some pics so far...

Using those chopticks...so proud!

Singing away...probably in Chinese....he is the light haired kid second from the right....