SNOW

Hi Everyone - I just had to blog quick to tell you all how I was feeling this Saturday morning. Andrew has just read me the new this morning from the MN and it was all about the weather. As you know how big of kid I am when it comes to snowstorms - I LOVE THEM and the snow and winter feeling is one of the things I miss most here in Korea. There are SNOW WARNINGS and BLIZARD WARNINGS all over - I hope you are all SAFE - but how cool with 20+ inches of snow over Watertown - WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I feel bad that these storms seem to be hitting over the weekend - I hope for a day off for you all - just to stay safe at home - play in the snow and drink hot chocolate - I'm sure our sledding hill is being used - Know that we miss you all and wish you a warm-cozy weekend as you watch the beautiful snow. My sister and family are coming today -we are crazy with anticipation! Take Care...

Andrew and his middle school cross-country team. Go Dragons!

Ail is working out on bars at the East Deajeon Education Center. This is a place where there are gymnasts who practice 4+ hours every day with hopes of being in the Olympics!

Hiking up' chicken-foot' mountain just last weekend. It isn't that steep, but I was huffing and puffing! Lonne is becoming quite the hiker - he actually runs up the hill and amazes the Koreans.

Here Lukas and Lonne are trying out some foot therapy!

Santa even stopped over to Korea for some early Christmas photo ops!

Ailsa trying out the street fare in Seoul -YUM!

We happened upon this lantern festival as we were in Seoul a couple of weeks ago. It is held once a year in SEOUL in November and because of the G-20 Summit this year - the staging was INCREDIBLE! There were floating lanterns depicting symbols from each of the 20 countries represented at the summit.

The kids inside the palace grounds. Anja is taking after her father's fanstastic map-reading skills.

OK - We just wanted to add some additional pictures of this fall and now winter. You can see Lukas gettting his hair cut. He loves getting the massage - the service is great! We had a fantastic day in Seoul about 3 weeks ago - we made it to 2 palaces, a lantern festival, out to eat and a little shopping - the kids slept well on the train home as did their mom and dad!

Deoksugung palace in Seoul - Changing of the guard.

The fruit and food stands out in the streets are plentiful - These apples were AMAZING

A top the fortress wall (700 years+) high above Daejeon

Andrew gets double the workout as 1/2 of our family members refuse to walk...

Look at Anja's determination - She is one TOUGH cookie - No one will mess with her!

Hi Everyone - Sorry it has taken us so long to update. At one point this summer, we thought that keeping a blog would be easy and we would have more time in Korea...We have been proven wrong once again.

We are doing fine. Can't believe it is December 5th. We just came back from a church potluck which was scrumptious. We have been busy, busy, busy. We are trying to keep up with school. Andrew's grades are due this week and mine after break. We have final exams week after next. It will all get done, but at times we don't know how. Ailsa has been doing gymnastics 3 days a week. Lukas is going through wrestling withdrawal, but has plenty of studying to do. Anja's social calendar is booked with weekend birthday parties and sleepovers. She is also perfecting her kicks in Tae Kwon Do. Lonne is busy climbing trees, running, birthday partying - yelling....among other activities. Andrew and I try to run after and keep things as quiet as possible. We have also been trying to dedicate some time on the weekends to trek around this HUGE city we live in. The mountains are gorgeous- so we have been doing some exploring/hiking - enjoying the physical exercise and great views -the weather here is quite mild - no snow and on average around 50 degrees F. It is nice!

Christmas is right around the corner so we are preparing the kids for school Christmas concerts and church programs which may include reading bible verses in front of church - Anja is reading the Holy Bible every night in preparation. As Ailsa was questioning her process, Anja responded... "Well what if we have to say 'Ecclesiastes' 'or something like that??? I don't want to mess up in front of the WHOLE church!" It was pretty cute.

My sister and family are coming in a week so we are busy decorating (Korean style...) and are excited. We will travel around Deajeon and also to Seoul. On Christmas morn we are heading off for an adventure in Thailand -(with my sister and niece and nephew...unfortunately, my brother-in-law has to head home Christmas day.) We will spend 8 days in Bangkok, Phuket and an island off of Phuket -we are very excited and very fortunate. Anyway - until then it is survival.

We miss all of you over the holidays. Friends and Family are so important. We are excited about the opportuntities to do some orphanage visits here and help some less fortunate individuls have a warm Christmas. We are thinking of you all - snuggle up and enjoy the season. Pray for Peace here in Korea and all over! We haven't felt the politics here in Daejeon, but we know that the Korean people are really feeling stressed and are hurting. Everyones' hopes for a unified country seem farther away these days - we are praying that a sense of calmness and peace is established and there can be discussions on bringing the countries together.

We will try to update as we can - Know that you are in our thoughts and prayers this holiday season! Take Care - LALALA

Go Ail!

Check out that speed and the socks - he is as goofy as ever!

TCIS UNITED - This was before they actually played ha/ha///


All the teams from TCIS -

(organized by Andrew! -A true photo op.)

And last - The Chicken truck - I know it seems a bit random -but after a long week - the chicken guy sets up camp outside of our apartment and we feast....It's all good!

Our corner Kagae (sp???) or the corner store :)

Our apartment building - We live on the 3rd floor.

Japan Pics - Kobe is a busy port city - check out those fishing poles!

Kobe beef - This is for you Jimmy and Marja - YUM! (Andrew didn't even use steak sauce - go figure!)

Here we are on the city bus (our preferred mode of transportation) - going grocery shopping...
TCIS gym - Home of the Dragons!

This picture was taken During Open House - We can safely report after today's conference that Lukas has had a smooth transition and is doing great in school...

Lukas and his teacher Mr. Lober - Look at those smiles!

These pics were taken during Open House back in Sept - You can see Ail and Anja with their classroom teachers. We just went to conferences for the 3 oldest today - We can safely say they are all progressing and doing great~!

One of Andrew's classes - out in the portable....

Looking down from Mr. Gilbert's classroom

Anja and her new friends!

Hello Everyone. First, we want to apologize that we haven't blogged in awhile. We have been busy with daily life - posting grades, conferences, PD and our first visitors from the states!

Two weeks ago, Andrew went to Kobe Japan for professional development on the Middle Years Programme in IB. He had a great time and tasted Kobe beef (my family will be drooling!)...He attended the conference during the day and explored by night. He wasn't feeling very good (coughing/conjestion) prior to going and his condition only got worse when he was there as he pushed himself to explore. Today he actually went to the "Happy Clinic" (no lie - although Andrew said they weren't very happy there....hmmm...) He got some antibiotics and is on the mend - FINALLY>

While he was off in Japan for 5 days, Mary Kleis and her friend Jennifer came for the weekend on their way to China. It was wonderful to spend some time with Mayr (college roommate and very good friend) and it was an opportunity for her to see our life here in Korea. I hope she and Jennifer had a great time. We even experienced our first Jin Ju Ban (sp???) Korean bathhouse together - this was an extreme cultural experience - complete with multiple soaking baths at different temperatures, various saunas and ice houses as well as a Dr. Fish pool. Yes, we soaked our feet in a pool with tons of little fish who swam up and ate the dead skin off our feet - it was a hair-raising experience and I screamed most of the time - Mayr and Jennifer were much braver than I - A 'must do' if you come to Korea!

Last weekend, I went to Seoul for the weekend for a KOTESOL conference (Korean TESOL). This was exciting. It was much better attended than in MinneTESOL - I haven't been to the National Conference, but I imagine it was something like that. This was for the PanAsian countries - very cool! We went to lots of sessions, learned about some Korean traditional games- which my co-worker and friend Michelle and I played and won! - And also did some shopping. Seoul has some really GREAT SHOPPING - VERY CUTE clothes - it was fun!

While I was at KOTESOL, Andrew went with the kids to a soccer Jamboree in Suwon. This is a city about 1.5 hours away from Daejeon. They had a great day - They played teams from all over Korea -as far as the results for their team: TCIS UNITED - Well...they weren't as good as they hoped (they won one)- let's just say the Koreans are GOOD little players! Ail played goalie and of course Lukas blamed her for the loss - this wasn't the real truth - Andrew said she has talent in this area -but it didn't help when the other team had over 20 shots on goal per game - Can we say Defense!

This week Andrew and I prepared for conferences. These took place yesterday starting at 12 - 8:30 (we taught for first 1/2 the day) and then again today from 11 - 3. We both felt they went well. At the high school level, they set up the tables in the gym as private/individual teacher stations with linons (white and black) with glass bulbs on each table - name plate in plastic - etc.... It was very professional and well attended. I think I have 30 total students (my classes are quite small)...and I had 20 parents attend - this was a good turn out! All my students are in 10th grade - usually the numbers dwindle as the kids get older. Andrew had an even better turn out - but middle school didn't have quite the presentation as the high school. Most of the TCIS students come to this school for their high school years (due to the tuition costs). The parents were very professional - extremely respectful - greatful...They want their kids to get an A - and want to see how they can help make that happen. It was a great cultural experience.

We now have a long weekend. We are really happy about this little break. We have PD on Monday and Tuesday again focusing on the Middle Years Programme -This time, our focus is on assessment. It is a good overview for all us newbees to the IB system or framework.

Anyway - the weather here has been gorgious! Sunny almost every day and in the 60's. We all are very greatful for this warm weather coming off of the monsoon season. We can't believe it is almost Halloween time - one of our favorite. We will miss hosting our annual Chili feed and constume party. We will be thinking of all you! We haven't decided what we will do here - I think it is much mellower here - we may go to Seoul as there are quite a few festivities there - we will keep you all posted. I hope all is well - missing you! LALAL A

Chusok - Buson Sept 2010

Blog from Buson.

Hello - Finally, we are on vacation after teaching 6 of the 7 weeks we have been in Korea. OH DOES IT FEEL GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is Chusok break. This is the harvest holiday or the Korean Thanksgiving holiday (and other countries following the lunar calendar). It is one of the biggest holidays in Korea - The country basically shuts down and the celebration occurs on Tuesday - Thursday. Today is Sunday,
I am sitting in a hotel room trying to connect to the internet - to no avail while the rest of my family sleeps. We are staying in the Haeundae Grand Hotel in Buson. It is beautiful- a bit pricey - but beautiful. The hotel faces the ocean (Sea of Japan - leading into the Pacific) WE are on the 18th floor - yikes!
We arrived on Friday night - after teaching, trying to leave school straight away - getting home with about 50 minutes to spare to try to pack up - getting a taxi to the train station and then off to Buson. We left Daejeon at 5:30 - arrived at Buson 7:30 pm. And then the adventure of trying to get to our hotel. I think we finally arrived at 9:30 - 10pm. The kids were exhausted! We decided to take the subway out to our hotel which was like 30-40 minutes from the train station. Buson is the 2nd largest city in Korea - so things take a lot more time than actual miles might suggest (as does traveling with a family of 6 - not quite the relaxing vacation time of Jamaica!!!). Anyway - after lugging our luggage (which was way to much by Korean standards) one bag per person….after toilet breaks - after dinner break by a fountain w/VERY whiny tired kids….we made it.
The story of our hotel room…..When we reserved the room we were shocked by the hotel costs. We therefore, elected to get a ‘Korean style’ hotel room where we would sleep on the floor on mats. I didn’t know what we had in store for us. Upon arrival - we were shocked - Our hotel was beautiful - Lukas announced, “This is what I‘m talk’en about, maybe this wasn‘t such a bad idea after all!” Our room was big, with vaulted ceiling, etc….but with one big floor. No chairs - etc. after looking through all the cabinets we finally found mats - there were only 4. After much discussion of which way the mats should go down - they were like pretty fancy comforters with a bit more body…with a white sheet over one side. The girls thought the sheet part should go face down so the pretty pink of the comforter was what we laid on - we went with that for part of the night - when things were sooooooooo uncomfortable - we switched to the other side (at least I did). When we finally woke - after really not sleeping I felt more tired than before we arrived. I told Andrew that something had to change - either more mats or a new room. We elected to ask at the front desk. They have since moved our rooms to one with beds. They said there wasn’t an up-charge. This was different from the information we received when we booked the hotel (thus the choice to sleep Korean styly initially). The cost on the door is about 100 dollars more than the other room. We are both holding our breath until check-out time - OH well, I just can’t do the “Korean style”…..Anyway - our room faces the ocean. It is beautiful. It is in a protected cove by an outcropping of rocks - the waves aren’t bad.

Yesterday, was the kids’ first experience swimming in an ocean. After screaming at the jelly fish on the beach and making all heads turn our way - we settled down. The weather is beautiful!!!!! Sunny - about 80-85 degrees. We played on the beach all day - the kids collected shells - swam - got very sandy (you all know how my kids are one with the sand - I’m not sure what that is about…..) Anyway - they had fun and were happy. We only ate a donut for breakfast - couldn’t find a reasonable western syle breakfast. We were very hungry around dinner time. We ate at Outback Steakhouse - It was GREAT! Anyway - after filling our bellies, we came back and the kids watched movies on the computer - Andrew went to the grocery store for supplies for today’s breakfast and I got really tired and eventually dozed off to sleep on a bed!
Today, I am watching early a.m. swimmers swim in the ocean - there are tons of Korean swimming and it is 7a.m. This is odd as Koreans usually sleep until 11 - as they are up so late at night. Lonne is by me asking if he can eat a piece of candy he received yesterday from a gentleman in the streets. It is really pretty. Sunny again today. Lonne and I are going to step out for some coffee before he wakes everybody up. I will write more soon! Liisa.

Hello - Today is Sunday - Sept. 26th. We arrived home from our vacation on Wednesday - it was awesome - we actually got tan! We then had PD days on Fri and Sat - not so much fun, but interesting - we are learning all about IB and the Middle Years Programme (educator lingo) - it was a good overview. We are tired and going to bed - not as prepared for the week as we may have hoped - but rested and full of beautiful Korean sites! This week is an easy week for me with SES (Spiritual Emphasis Week) we meet in ‘house’ groups for 3 days…no school - this will be my saving grace J Andrew is preparing for his travels to Japan for training and also a visit to the World Cup Soccer Stadium in Daejeon this coming SAt - Should be fun! Anyway - We miss you all and hope you enjoy the pics!