Friday, October 30, 2009

Happy Halloween


Today is Halloween and we are sure excited to go out and get some treats. A couple of weeks ago we got our pumpkins and then we killed them and carved them up for family night this week. Addy and Logan sure had a blast painting theirs. I harvested all of the seeds for Amber and she made a great batch of roasted pumpkin seeds.
When we put the pumpkin down in front of Addy she hugged it and gave a witch-like cackle... pretty cute coming from her.
Here she is painting her design on its face. By the time she was done it was a big blob of purple. I think we will be finding it in all of her cracks and crevices for a while.
When I was on my mission in Pusan, we could not find any pumpkins so we got a squash and a watermelon and carved them up. We were really happy to find pumpkins at the commissary.
Logan was pretty fond of his pumpkin too.
really fond of it:)
Logan drew a face on one side of his pumpkin and his name on the other.
Getting the seeds out is tough work, Logan got his hands dirty helping me out.
mmmmmmm.... yummy!
First mostly smiling family pic in a while. Thanks to Ben for hooking us up with a tripod.
Here are the final products.
Now these are an entirely different story. We were invited to a costume party and we did not have a costume so we got creative. Amber got some sweats (from chancho) and a sheet and we hand drew, colored, cut-out, and pinned on the bones. It took us three late nights to get done. It was also the first time that we have ever paid a baby-sitter to watch the kids. What a blast. The Bartletts know how to throw a party, It was cool like a Turpin party. There were all sorts of props, and games and music, it was a blast. I think that our costumes turned out pretty good.
Thank you Tony for taking care of the kids and keeping my Xbox company:)

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Locking our Love at Namsan Tower

Sorry for the long lull in posts, good news is, there is a lot to post, bad news is, who knows how long it will take to do:) So a few weeks ago we made the trek up to Namsan Tower. It was kind of fun to take Amber and the kids through the alleyways and streets, asking for directions along the way. Living near the base, even though we are in Korea, it doesn't really feel like it. Anyhow, at Namsan Tower we took part in a modern rite of passage. Here in Korea, soap operas or "dramas" are what it is all about. So in some drama a few years back the main couple took a couple of pad locks up to Namsan, wrote a message of their undying love for each other on it and fastened it to the chain link fence. Last of all they threw the key over the fence to symbolize the finality of the ordinance (for lack of a better term). So naturally the next day, everyone who watched the drama rushed up to the tower and copied the deed. Now a couple of years later, there is hardly a spot to put a lock. How could we resist leaving a token of our love Korean style... note the cool benches that are angled in a way that forces you to sit close to whomever you are with... very romantic in a cheezy way...
Addysen is still in her taste everything phase.... In case you were wondering how swine flue gets spread, I am pretty sure this could be one of the ways:)
So you can see the thousands if not millions of locks and some of them have entire novels written in small script, expressing deep personal feelings, everything from the "100 day" dating anniversary to one that we found of a daughter who came from the US in search of her birth mother, and having found her came and put a lock on the fence to mark the occasion.
Yup there is Addy again. Everywhere we go people are taking her picture and touching her hair. I took this one trying to be stealthy as to not freak out the unsuspecting adorer... really though, should I feel bad about taking a picture of somebody taking a picture of my kid?
So there is our lock, I had a hard time writing small enough so ours is short and mathmatical: Spencer + Amber = Logan & Addy... makes sense right?
So if you are ever in Seoul, I highly recommend this activity. Also if you are a Male and want to kill two birds with one stone, (I mean doing two cool things at one location) don't miss using the men's urinal at the top of the tower.
So in order to seal the deal, Logan held the "key of a thousand truths" over his head like He-Man at the castle Grey Skull, and in spite of all of the "do not throw your key" signs lobbed our key over the fence.
Here is the view from the base of the tower.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Logan does the monkey bars

Puzzle No.2

We decided that during our 8 hour conference marathon, it would be fun to try another puzzle... luckily we had bought two.
The only problem was that this one was wider than our table so... we had to improvise.
it took almost all of conference to finish. We had so much fun that we went back to Ipark to get another one and to our dismay, the puzzle store had gone out of business. What a bummer.
So here it is.... until we find another source:)

He likes to keep his fire engine clean...

Last week Logan's school got a special visit from the Yongsan Fire Department. The brought up one of their engines and gave each of the kids a chance to see it up close.
Here he is with his class, the one on the far right is Kimora, she has a thing for Logan and is always trying to get his attention.
Check out the vintage Star Wars shirt...
This is what pure happiness looks like. The boy loves trucks, he kept asking, "why isn't it red" that was his only disappointment.
Many of the kids were impatient and unruly but Logan was better behaved than he is at church, it was like he was trying to take it all in.
Each of the kids got a chance to turn on the fire hose.
Addy thought this was all pretty cool too.

Melts in your mouth...... and up your nose

So this is what it looks like when you lose a fight to the Cheeto tiger.... Logan was playing conference bingo with m & m's and I guess he got bored. We heard him crying so we looked over and to our horror, he had shoved an orange piece right up his nostril. I ran over and told him not to breathe in, then plugged his right nostril and told him to blow. Unfortunately I did not think to put something in front of his face to catch the technicolor explosion. Logan was pretty traumatized but it was all to good to miss, so I grabbed the camera.
So kids, don't try this at home:)

Thursday, October 08, 2009

First Day of School Celebration

I know this is old news but I wanted to document this outing we had. After Logan first day of school we had a fun Family Night going to Burger King. It was great to get to tell Spencer all about Logan's first day of school. It made him feel really special so that made me happy. We might have to make this tradition.
My handsome boys.....love you both.

Cute Faces

I just can't resist these FACES!! I love them so much. I feel so blessed that they belong to me.
"KIMCHI"

National History Museum

I am behind.... a couple weeks ago we went with Hope and Taylor to the Korean National History Museum. The kids enjoyed walking around the museum but it sure is hard to walk and be so quiet. :-) They were pretending to be super heros and lifting up all the objects with their powers. It was fun to watch them entertain themselves. I think Logan's favorite part was riding his scooter to and from the museum. He had a great time racing Taylor and taking a break and watching cars.
These are the steps out in front of this beautiful building. I am excited to go back with Spencer, he will love it.

Wednesday, October 07, 2009

Samsung Children's Museum

My friend Hope her daughter Taylor, Logan, Addysen and me went to the Samsung Children's Museum. We took the subway and thanks to Hope being pro we made it there with no problems. Addysen loved, loved it!! She was so happy to be playing in the water. We have a lot of water fountains by our house but I never let her play in them. In Korea you never know where the water is coming from. So needless to say she was thrilled.
They had this one really cool building area that Logan and Taylor spent a hour playing with. It was like they were construction workers and Logan operated the crane and sent blocks up to Taylor on the second floor. It was neat I have to say the children's museum in New Mexico and Maryland was better.....but we had a great day out with friends. And yes this is the same friends that we went to the water park on the BUS with. I told her she was a brave woman. :-) Luckily no major moments on this outing.

This was the best picture I could get......which you can tell isn't good of all three of them they were just running around crazy. It was super fun and then of course on the way home on the Subways the DS came out.
At one point Logan was sitting in between two little old Grandmas and he kept showing them his game when he did good. They would smile (I think really enjoyed having him) and of course he loved the attention. I love that even when you don't speak the same language children have a way of breaking thru that barrier. The kids were even given candy from a lady. The Koreans are always giving the kids food, candy you name it. I love being here and having the opportunity to experience this life.

Sunday, October 04, 2009

Starting to get excited for Halloween!

Today after church we started watching some Disney Halloween stuff. Here is what we covered today. Go ahead and watch if you want to get ready for the big day with us:)





Thursday, October 01, 2009

The Korean War Memorial

Last week I worked shift (which was really tough) but as a reward, I got Monday off:) After spending 4 hours on skype with my family, first watching them enjoy a steak dinner then doing some long overdue catching up, we still had time for some sightseeing. We were going to go to Namsan Tower but the visibility was low due to light rain so we opted to see the nearby Korean War Memorial instead. I can't speak for Amber and the kids but to me it was fascinating.
The main building was closed because everything is closed on Mondays, but the grounds surrounding the museum are filled with weapons, planes, tanks, and even a submarine. Not to mention the beautiful monument.
Addy and Logan had a blast running up and down the cargo holds of the bombers, most of the planes had stairs leading up to open doors so you could go inside and see.
This plane dropped crates full of tank fuel.
Logan had a fun time looking at all of the sights.
Our little roaring tigers.
I don't know if you can tell in this picture but there is some pretty heavy bondo work on the turret of this tank, It was cool to think that many of these weapons of war, especially the North Korean ones, had seen action.
here is comrade Addy Jong-il giving on the spot guidance to an anti-aircraft battalion...
Logan is serious about aiming his turret...
I would hate to be at the other end of these babies...
A view to a kill...
The statues on the main monument were huge, the kids were hardly the size of the soldier's boot.
These days Logan is rarely seen without his scooter... sure beats walking.
We have now seen the monument to the Korean war in D.C. as well as the one in Seoul, there were only two similarities between the two (as far as I could tell) Both had the inscription reminding us that "Freedom is not Free" and both featured statues with very dramatic faces. The one in D.C. shows U.S. soldiers walking through a mine field which makes sense since from the perspective of a U.S. soldier, that is what the conflict may have meant. Fear of death and an unsure cause that was pulling them across a snowy field laden with deadly mines. Their faces were detailed in a way that really projected that fear and uncertainty. The faces on the various people depicted on the statues in Seoul also exuded emotion, but not of fear. There was anger, sadness, resolve and purpose that seemed to outweigh any fear.
The statues are made up of two groups of people pressing forward in a circular pattern. The description of the monument did not specify who was being represented, after making up my own mind on the matter it struck me as strange that the truth was not disclosed in the description. It felt kind of like looking at the graves of confederate soldiers laid to rest and honored at the national cemetery in Virginia. When facing the building, the group to the left was obviously made up of South Korean Solders and civilians, leading the pack was this strong figure grasping the edge of the Korean flag. He is flanked by another fierce character stretching forth his had as if to warn anybody who would dare get in the way of their advance. Following the leaders are various military folk, one of whom is holding an orphaned girl. He was followed by an older man with his traditional backpack full of his earthly belongings symbolizing the exodus of many to the South throughout the conflict. Next came the woman prostrate on the ground crying and reaching out as if she is begging her son or husband not to go. Lastly were a group of children with fists clenched and raised as if they are meeting someone at the flagpole to fight. I am not sure if this was to show that even the children were engrossed in the battle or if it was to portray the powers at war as children picking a fight.
On the right side the group of statues is fast on the trail of the boys at the end of the left group, (who seem unaware of the stone faced men coming their way). The description did not say so but it was clear to me that these were the brothers from the North. They have no banner to give them away but the emotionless face of the lead soldier betrays the intent of the sculptor. A man on a mission as if he is brainwashed into finishing a task given by a mystical general. Though he follows the South in the never ending circle, he is the aggressor, nothing in his face to denote a moral battle being fought between families, neighbors, fathers and sons or even a resolve to defend his home. He is a powerful puppet brought to life by an untouchable master. Behind him are fearless troops including a woman soldier, another clue pointing to the true identities of the ambiguous throng. Next came the one common player on both sides, the innocent who had now power but to run and attempt to dodge the pieces of their collapsing world. Last of all is a grown man who appears shirtless and in a martial arts stance seemingly anticipating the charge coming from the South. The War, as all wars, has over the years been politicized and those hoping to gain a foothold in the political arena have done their best to foresee hindsight so that they can invest themselves entirely in whichever viewpoint is popular and is seen as "right". One author likened the Korean war to a family feud, stating that only brothers who had loved each other so much could fight so brutally. Where are these brothers now?
It won't be long now and those who remember the war will all be gone.
The other main monument is called a tree of life as well as the Sword of Korea, depending on how you look at it, either way, the tree or the sword are both split and thus incomplete and useless in their function without the other half.
Who knows what the future holds but mark me down as one who would love to be around for unification. Part of me just wants to see those two old men go home together.


This is the North Korean Mig fighter used by a defector to fly to the South, it was cool to see the actual jet.