I had a lunch with a couple Korean mom friends today.  I won’t name any names in this story because I am protecting the innocent.  I really debated if this was blog appropriate.

So, friend A is a conservative, sophisticated, well-educated mom of 2 kids.  She had a pretty high powered career before moving to China for her husband’s job and entering the stay-at-home-mom world (her visa doesn’t allow her to work, like so many other moms here).   She is always impeccably dressed with fashionable clothes, shoes, and accessories.

She was recently given a t-shirt as a gift and she wanted to know the meaning of the words on the shirt before she wore it.  She has a personal rule that she won’t wear clothes with other languages on them unless she knows the meaning of the words (a WISE rule considering some of the shirts we see on a daily basis here!).   The shirt in question read “G is for Gangsta”.   Understandably, the word “gangsta” wasn’t in the Korean-English dictionary she consulted.

Seriously, have you ever tried to explain the concept of “gangsta” to someone in your mutually-shared second language?  Because it isn’t easy!!   Hilarious though.

The second question she had for me was my favorite though.   Apparently, in Korea (please don’t take this story as indicative of every Korean person on the planet- this is just her experience/understanding) the word “sexy” is used as a general adjective such as pretty or fashionable.    For the last generation, it has been accepted as a widely used “Konglish” (Korean-English) term in daily speech.

For example, friend A said when her babies were little, she and her mom would often pat them on the bottom and say “oh you’re so sexy!”  (insert me laughing hysterically here).   She said even her husband will tell the kids “That’s sexy!” or “You look sexy!”  (insert me crying with laughter at this point).

So, keeping this in mind, she said one of her friends recently moved to America and enrolled their preschool aged child in a local preschool.  The kid came home with a note from the teacher explaining that the child had been telling other kids they were sexy and that it was inappropriate.   Can you imagine?  I was laughing so hard I almost couldn’t talk or breathe at that point.   I completely understood what she was saying about how the word was used differently in Korean culture, but from an American standpoint, it is obviously completely not the accepted usage of the word.  Can you imagine a 3 or 4 year old kid coming in a preschool class and telling another student they are sexy?

So, she wanted an explanation of why this happened and what the word sexy means culturally in America.

The moral to this story?  Don’t wear clothes if you don’t know what they say.  And be careful adopting words from other languages into your daily vocabulary without really understanding what they mean in the native tongue!

I had a Korean culture lesson as well, but I’ll save that for another day ;).

Our sweet little 11 month old neighbor baby boy, Chang Hee, came over for a quick photo session this morning.  By quick I mean that he only lasted about 2 1/2 minutes before he started crying for his mom.  He fell last night and hurt his lip so he was not a very happy guy.

Isn’t he precious though?

I love this kid! :)  He’s so adorable!

I had a friend stop by so I could practice with her… she’s a natural model, don’t you think?

She just got back from a vacation in Bali (Lucky!!) so she is tan and lovely.  We were attempting to use the fan for the windswept look.  I think it might be more tornado than intended.

Sorry for the boring posts.  I’m pretty focused on the middle school musical (School House Rock) and getting my photography stuff ready for my students to come over to my house for a field trip next week.

I got two strobe lights with softboxes delivered today.  What does this mean?  Light- lots of it- for portraits.

I’m about half in love with them, half in hate with them at the moment.  But I’m sure, given time, I will learn to embrace them completely.

Of course, the fact that I have only ONE model that sits patiently might be part of the issue…

I think the learning curve may be a little steeper than I anticipated… but that’s okay.

Not too bad for day 1.

I love bread.  Clarification: I love homemade bread or really good fresh bakery bread.  I do not like prepackaged, soft-to-the-point-of-possibly-not-being-a-food-anymore Wonderbread.  I do not like the dry, sweet Chinese sliced bread.  I do also do not like the bread with corn in it, little slivers of meat, or other questionable things that we often find here.

I’m also lazy.  Very lazy.  I don’t want to measure ingredients every day.  I don’t want to knead dough.  I use my breadmaker for dough.  BUT I don’t always have enough time to make a loaf because you have to wait 90 minutes for it to do the breadmaker dough thing then another hour on the counter to second rise, then an hour to bake.

So when I saw the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day method on another blog I literally could not wait to make it.   Unfortunately, that day I was out of flour so I had to wait till the next day when I had a chance to go pick some up.  It was so very worth the wait.

If you are lazy and you still like homemade bread, please please please try this method.  It is sooo simple and you just can’t mess it up.

I made a loaf this morning before school- we were up at 6 and the bus leaves at 7:30 and I had a slice in the girls’ hands as they walked to the bus.  You can’t beat the simplicity!  I have another loaf in the oven now to give the neighbors.  I am pretty sure she will be my best friend after she tastes this loaf.  If she doesn’t die from the sheer joy of tasting this stuff.  It is THAT good.  And EASY.  No kneading.  No time commitment.

Even if you aren’t lazy, it is still something to try.

The recipe is completely typed up >here< so I feel no need to duplicate.  She even has photos.   Mine was gone before I could take a photo of it.

The book has tons more recipes using the dough, but for me, just the basic will do for now!   I have a great french onion soup recipe that is dying to be paired with a slice of fresh-from-the-oven bread.  Is that not the perfect antidote to winter?

There are a couple Korean dishes that I would label the comfort foods of Korea… dishes that give me that same feeling as a dish of mom’s homemade macaroni and cheese (making that for dinner tonight, by the way!).

For me, yubu chobap (say it like this: yoo boo cho bop) is one of those dishes.  It is actually a Japanese food, inarizushi, but the Koreans have sort of mutually claimed the dish as their own.  Whatever the origin, it is yummy.  And easy.  And soooo comforting.

I have a hard time calling this a recipe, as there is no real “cooking” involved.   You’ll need two things: Rice & yubu chobap mix.  I get the mix in the refrigerated section at the Korean grocery store.  In America, I think you can get it at any Asian grocery store in the refrigerated or maybe freezer section.   Mine looks like this, although there are a couple different brands and such.

Inside the package, there are aburaage (tofu shells), a sprinkle packet of some stuff (I think it is a type of furikake, but I don’t know my Japanese terms very well so we will call it sprinkle stuff), and a packet of sushi vinegar.  It doesn’t look appetizing yet, but don’t worry!  Each package usually contains enough wrappers to make 16 chobap.  If you don’t like tofu, don’t worry because the tofu in this doesn’t taste like tofu.  I had no idea what the skins were made of  the first half dozen times I ate chobap!

You’ll want to make 2 cups of rice in a rice cooker or using whatever method of rice preparation you like.   I am making a double batch in the images below, so if you’re thinking “wow, that’s a lotta 2 cups of rice” you are very correct!  I use a Korean sushi-type rice, but really, as long as you have some kind of semi-sticky rice you’ll be okay.  Some people use brown rice and that is okay too.  You just don’t want rice that is really dry and doesn’t hold together or it will not be as easy to eat!

Pour the packets onto the rice and stir it up.

Make a delicious salad to go with your dinner… crab and almonds and mixed greens and orange-sesame viniagrette…

Okay, you can skip making the salad.  But don’t skip the next part.  It is IMPORTANT.  Take those skins out of the package and RINSE them.  They have been fried and by rinsing them and patting them dry on a paper towel, you get rid of some of that oil.  I didn’t rinse them at first and my Korean friends were like “Hellooooo!  That is gross, SuJin!  Rinse them!”    Rinse them and pat them dry.

They open up like a pita, into a little pocket shape.  Use a spoon to fill them up with the rice mixture and use the back of the spoon to sort of mash in the filling and make them firm up.  I cup my hand in a c-shape around the pocket while I fill it, but I couldn’t take a photo of that while I did it, but it makes it easier if you hold it firmly.   I serve them with the rice side down, like little mountains.  But you can also serve them rice-side up.

These are sooooo yummy and SIMPLE.  They make a great side with any Asian food AND they are wonderful in a school lunch.  They can be eaten hot or cold, so if you toss it in a lunch they hold up very well.  The wrapper keeps the rice moist and flavorful and even a couple hours later they are still soft and good.

If you have leftover rice, it is quite yummy to eat with a spoon.  The sushi vinegar and the sprinkle stuff give it a good flavor.  The girls beg for that leftover rice!

So, that’s my Korean comfort food.  Well, one of them, anyway.   I seriously have to control myself from making this every day.

On another note: Molie is doing well.  He’s fully vaccinated now so we’re taking him for walks.  Unfortunately his little less-than-2-pound self is too small for all the harnesses we’ve found so far.  I ordered one online but it isn’t here yet.  So for now, we use a satin ribbon tied as a harness around his chest and forelegs.   The sweater ONLY stays on with the harness there- without it it just slips right off of him!  But it is really too cold for him to go out without the sweater!

Complete Side Note: My 50mm 1.8 camera lens is dying, so if you’ve noticed focus issues in my photos for the last 6 months or so, you’re not having vision problems!  I ordered a new 28mm 1.8 and I’m excited to not only have a new lens, but to be able to focus again!  Yippee!

I have learned am learning to appreciate unexpected guests/invitations.

One of my Korean mom friends is the queen of unexpected invitations.  They usually go like this “SuJin, we are meeting for coffee today at 10:30. You will be there.”  I look at my clock.  9:45.  I’m in pajamas.   But I’ve been informed that I WILL be there, so I shower and arrive and have a great time of course.  I think 99% of this is a communication gap.  Somewhere between her wanting to spend time with me and her asking me, the language gap was a bit too wide.  And that’s okay.

I’ve never failed to have a good time with this person, and we have had many meaningful conversations in the last 19 months that I’ve known her.  And just this month, she started a relationship with our now-mutual Father.

So I’m keeping this in mind tonight.

Yesterday, I was outside with Kate while she was playing on her new scooter in the courtyard.  There were a dozen Korean girls who live in our neighborhood who were playing out there at the same time.  (Yes, our neighborhood is predominately Korean- something I’m more aware of every day!) They were digging for mud and making mud animals.  They all spoke decent to good English and were asking me loads of questions.  One of them was very very chatty.  She is 8 years old and asked for my phone number.  I had no pen or paper so I just rattled off the 11 digits and assumed she would forget it.  She also told me she was coming over to my house that night at 6:00.  Told, not asked.

At 6:00, my phone rang.  She said she couldn’t come over right then, but she and her whole family would come over for dinner at 7:00.  Thud.  That’s my jaw hitting the floor.   3 phone calls and one text message INALLCAPSWITHNOSPACES later, we agreed on Sunday at 6:00.

So, tonight, we have company!  She can hopefully befriend our daughters.  Hopefully the parents (I’ve never met them) are nice.  There are so many unknowns, you know?

I’ll share the “results” tomorrow along with a recipe for my most favorite “comfort” Korean food, yubu chobap.  Well, it is a Korean food that is somewhat stolen from the Japanese, but that’s okay.   Actually, recipe is a stretch.  It is the easiest food you’ll ever make, if you try it.  And you will love it.

Edited to Add:  That might have been *the* single most awkward dinner of my life.  I don’t regret it because you never know how things work out unless you try, right?  But wow.  Awkward.  I will post the yubu chobap stuff tomorrow.  I’m going to go watch some Olympics and de-awkwardize my life now.

Alright, this will be one of the least popular posts ever on my blog!

I was asked in a comment on the previous post:

My comments are not in judgment, but merely curiosity. Dog Soup was a bit of a shock to see, but then again, I’m a vegetarian, so Clotted Cow Blood Stew and Live Octopus aren’t any more appetizing. I have heard people say that dogs are eaten in Korea, but it was always in the context of a put-down by an ignorant person, so I assumed it wasn’t true. Needless to say, I know next to nothing about Korea. Anyway….Are the “food” dogs farmed like cows and pigs? Can you buy dog meat in the grocery? Do they know that eating dog in the West is considered taboo? For example, it is so common in the West to eat beef that when I first learned that cows are not eaten in India, it was a complete shock. I do not think Indians are weird because they don’t eat beef, I just see it as an interesting cultural difference. I would love to know how my revulsion about dog eating is viewed over there. Also, do Korean families keep pets? If so, are dogs included?

Okay, there are several questions packed in here.  I know this person is not alone in her thoughts so I wanted to make a full post out of this one.

Before I get started though, the “Ask a Korean” blog is a great place for all things Korean, and his post >>here<< details more than I feel qualified to answer.  Warning: He has some harsh language in his personal opinion on the custom.  I just wanted to warn in advance!  Also, he has some images that may bother some people.

In both China and Korea, dog is eaten.  However, this isn’t like you go to McDonald’s and you order a burger and it is dog meat and it is unexpected.  It isnt like they “sneak” the dog meat into your food.

There are a couple of dog restaurants in Tianjin, but I haven’t eaten at them.  The majority of animal protein consumed in Tianjin is definitely PORK followed by chicken and beef and lamb and seafood.  In southern China, they get “exotic” in their food choices and you can go to markets where you buy live animals for your dinner, including cats, birds, turtles, snakes, scorpions, etc…  These things are less common in Tianjin.  In north eastern China, there is another area where dog consumption is more common.  Again, by more common, I don’t mean daily.

In both China and Korea, dogs and cats are kept as pets.  MANY (20% or more maybe?) people in our area have dogs as pets and our apartment complex is full of people out walking their dogs in the morning and evening.  They dress their dogs up, dye their fur fun colors (I saw a BRIGHT pink and orange poodle the other day!!), lavish them with treats, etc…  For the most part, I think Chinese pet owners love their pets.

So, given the above, why is dog meat eaten in several Asian countries?  Why are cats also eaten in China (I’m not sure if they are eaten in other Asian nations)?  Well, the easiest answer is why not?  What makes dog somehow different than rabbit, pheasant, cow, duck, chicken, pig, bison, or deer?  There are many types of animal flesh that are eaten in some countries that are considered “strange” to other nations.  Horse meat is eaten in some countries, not in others.

Some people argue that the method of killing dogs for consumption is inhumane… but considering where I live, I’m not certain that there are humane killing practices for *any* animals here.  Actually, I’m not certain there is always humane treatment of huma… well… I should just stop there before I get myself in trouble and complete that sentence!  So I can’t automatically rule out dog meat on that one alone.  I think the answer to that is more humane slaughtering for ALL animals that are consumed, not just Fido!

Anyway, the Ask a Korean site does a much better job with this one than I can.  For me, it is not an area in which I have an ethical concern.   I do understand where people are coming from with their concerns.  But for me, it is just not an issue.  I eat some things… other people eat other things.  Would I eat dog if it was served?  I’m sure I would.  It is just the flesh of an animal.  Would I eat it daily and buy it on purpose to prepare it?  No.

We’re on a 2 week Chinese New Year break…

Life has been as noisy as you’d expect it to be during Chinese New Year… full of firecrackers and fireworks.  I don’t know if I fully understood the difference in those 2 words until we lived here.  Firecrackers = noisy little things that have no point other than making noise.  Fireworks = noisy but pretty, the better of the two.

I came across this list today of 100 Korean Foods to Try Before You Die.  Considering we don’t live in Korea, I think we’ve done pretty well so far!

This list is taken from an old post on ZenKimchi.  Bold means we’ve tried it.

1. Myeolchi Bokkeum (Stir-fried Anchovies)  멸치볶음
2. Samgyetang (Ginseng Chicken Soup) 삼계탕
3. Bulgogi (Grilled Marinated Beef) 불고기
4. BulDalk (Burn-your-pants-off Spicy Grilled Chicken) 불닭
5. DalkBal (Spicy Chicken Feet) 닭발
6. Korean Fried Chicken 치킨
7. Dalk Galbi (Stir-fried Marinated Chicken and Veggies) 닭갈비
8. San Nakji, chopped (Semi-live Baby Octopus) 산낙지
9. San Nakji, whole (Live Octopus)
10. Sundubu Jjigae (Soft Tofu Stew) 순두부 찌게
11. Juk (Rice Porridge) 죽
12. Galbi (Grilled Short Ribs) (소)갈비
13. Galbitang (Short Rib Soup) 갈비탕
14. Shinseollo (Fancy Hot Pot) 신선로
15. Gobchang Gui (Grilled Beef Intestines) 곱장구이
16. Seng Gan (Raw Beef Liver) 생간
17. Galbi Jjim (Stewed Ribs) 갈비찜
18. Bossam (Steamed Marinated Pork with Lettuce Wraps) 보쌈
19. Japchae (Clear Noodles Stir-fried with Pork and Vegetables) 찹재
20. Jaeyuk Bokkeum (Spicy Stir-fried Pork) 재육볶음
21. Kimchi Jjim (Stewed Kimchi with Tofu)깁치찜
22. Ddong Jip (Chicken Gizzards)똥집
23. Odeng/Eomuk (Street-side Fish Noodles) 어댕/어묵
24. Hoddeok (Stuffed Street-side Pastries) 호떡
25. GeiJang (Raw Fermented Crabs) 게장
26. Hongeo (Fermented Skate) 홍어
27. Gochujang Samgyeopsal (Grilled Pork Belly Smothered in Red Pepper Paste) 고추장 삼겹살
28. Lotteria’s Shrimp Burger
29. Sae-u Kang (Shrimp Flavored “Fries”) 새우깡
30. Doenjang Jjigae (Fermented Bean Paste Stew) 됀장찌게
31. Cheonggukjang (Stinky Fermented Bean Paste Stew) 정국장 *Side Note: This smells horrifyingly bad!
32. Boshintang (Dog Soup) 보신탕
33. Seonji Haejangguk (Hangover Stew with Clotted Cow Blood) 선지 해장국
34. Ddeokbokki (Chewy Rice Cakes in Spicy Sauce) 떡볶이
35. YukHui (Raw Beef Salad) 육희
36. MiyeokGuk (Seaweed Soup) 미역국
37. Mae-eunTang (Spicy Fish Soup) 매운탕
38. Nakji Bokkeum (Stir-fried Baby Octopus) 낙지볶음
39. Ojingeo (Cuttlefish) (마른) 오징어
40. Beondaeggi (Silkworm Larvae) 번대기
41. Golbaenggi (Sea Snails) 골뱅이
42. Jangeo Gui (Grilled Eel) 장어구이 (I’ve had eel but not in a Korean restaurant so I can’t count this one!)
43. Jaratang (Turtle Soup) 자라탕
44. Bogeo (Blowfish) 복어
45. Sae-u Sogeum Gui (Salt Grilled Shrimp) 새우소금 구이
46. Deodeok Root 더덕
47. BindaeDdeok (Mung Bean Pancake) 빈대떡
48. Pajeon (Green Onion Pancake) 바전
49. Bibimbap (Mixed Rice and Vegetables) 비빔밥
50. Boribap (Mixed Barley Rice and Vegetables) 보리밥
51. Marinated Garlic (마늘장아찌?)
52. Patbingsu (Shaved Ice and Red Bean Treat) 팥빙수
53. Dotorimok (Acorn Jelly) 도토리목
54. Naengmyeon (Chilled Noodles) 냉면
55. Makkoli/Dongdongju (Rice Beer) 막거리/ 동동주
56. Bokbunja (Raspberry Wine) 복분자
57. Soju (Rice Whiskey) 소주
58. Andong Soju (Strong Rice Whiskey from the Andong Region) 안동소주
59. Jogae Gui (Grilled Shellfish) 조개구이
60. Haepari (Jellyfish) 해바리
61. Gyeran Jjim (Steamed Egg) 계란찜
62. Corn Ice Cream
63. Dolsot Bibimbap (Mixed Rice and Vegetables in a Sizzling Stone Pot) 돌솥비빔밥
64. Mandu (Stuffed Dumplings) 만두
65. Ddeokguk (Chewy Rice Cake Soup) 떡국
66. Songpyeon (Stuffed Chewy Rice Cakes) 송편
67. Hot Bar (Fried Fish Batter Street Food) 헛바
68. Shikhye (Sweet Rice Punch) 식혜 (our Korean neighbor brought this to us 2 days ago!)
69. Any product with Green Tea in it 녹차맛
70. Gujeolpan (Nine-section Dish) 구절반
71. Yogurt Soju Cocktail
72. Baechu Kimchi (Cabbage Kimchi) 배추김치
73. Any Kimchi that’s over 3 years old (I have no idea how old the kimchi I’ve eaten is!  But I’ve had some that was flown over from Korea in someone’s grandma’s suitcase!)
74. Baek Kimchi (White Cabbage Kimchi) 백김치
75. Shake-’em-up Dosirak
76. Mul Kimchi (Water Kimchi) 물김치
77. Oi Sobagi (Stuffed Cucumber Kimchi) 오이소바기
78. Ggakdugi (Cubed Radish Kimchi) 깍두기
79. Sae-u Jeot (Salted Tiny Shrimp) 새우젓
80. Myeongran Jeot (Salted Pollack Roe) 명란젓
81. Changran Jeot (Salted Pollack Guts)장란젓
82. Ssamjang (Mixed Soybean and Pepper Paste) 쌈장
83. Kalguksu (Hand-cut Noodle Soup) 갈국수
84. Ramyeon (Ramen Noodles) in a Tin Pot 라면
85. Entire Hui Meal (Korean style Sashimi) 회
86. Gimbap (Seaweed Rice Rolls) 김밥
87. Jokbal (Pigs Feet) 족발
88. Sundae (Blood and Noodle Sausage) 순대
89. Yeot (Traditional Korean Candy) 엿
90. Naengi (Shepherd’s Purse) 냉이
91. Kimchi Jjigae (Kimchi Stew) 김치찌게
92. Budae Jjigae (“Army Base” Stew, traditionally including hot dogs and Spam) 부대지게
93. Agu Jjim (Stewed Monkfish) 아구찜
94. Haemultang (Seafood Soup) 해물탕
95. Nurungji (Hot Water Mixed with Rice Scrapings in a Stone Pot) 누릉지
96. Sujebi (Rustic Dumpling Soup) 수재비
97. Janchi Guksu (Thin Noodles in a Seaweed Broth with Condiments) 잔치국수
98. BungeoBbang (Goldfish-shaped Stuffed Pastry) 봉어빵
99. Raw Ginseng or anything with Ginseng in it 인삼
100. MakHui (Chilled Sashimi Soup) 막희

Not too shabby!  50 even!!  Keith has 1 less than me (49)… he hasn’t had fancy Korean hot pot.  I guess I know where to take him for our next date ;).

Side Note Again: We have had chicken feet, just not Korean spicy chicken feet.  Actually, in Hong Kong over Christmas, Keith was getting some dim sum for us and was walking around pointing at dishes he wanted to try (completely appropriate at dim sum).   He was expecting something other than chicken feet- I don’t know what.  They were not the tastiest or easiest to eat neatly.  But not horrible.  I’m game to try some spicy Korean ones now.   I’m not sure about the raw beef liver though.

So, earlier this year I posted about Kate’s struggle with education and school.  The recap of that post would be that she hates PE because you get hot and sweaty, and she doesn’t like when school is “hard” or when she has to “try”.

I had both a comment here and an email from someone else that made it obvious that not every person agreed with my parenting style and decisions regarding Kate’s educational challenges.  Which is, of course, fine.  But I was confident that she needed to stay in school, so it was not really a question for me.

But, I do want to give an update about where we’re at now.  She is still in school, of course.

Kate’s attitude about school has improved *so* much this year.   She now says she loves recess, art, Bible, and music.  She says the hardest thing at school is homework (I’ll save my rant on kindergarten homework for another day, but I know the reasons it is given here- the school has to please both western parents who are saying no homework and Asian parents who are demanding requesting 5 hours of homework, so one page a night in kindergarten is the middle ground compromise).  She still doesn’t love PE.  And given her athletic genes (ha ha ha) and her balance struggles, that is completely understandable.  And she may never love PE- I know I never did!!!  And I don’t have any false expectations of that- she can hate PE for 13 years if she needs to- but I do think it is important even if we hate it!

But the part that makes me happy is the progress she has made.  Not just educationally, although she is thrilled that she can read now!  Now, she’s not reading chapter books or anything- but c’mon she’s 5 1/2 years old!  I know that this reading breakthrough has made a huge difference for her happiness at school.  She’s struggled a lot with spatial things like writing things mirror perfect backwards and reading backwards… so I know it has felt more like a challenge than fun a lot of the time.  It can also be hard when your classmates are all in hagwon (extra evening academy) and are a couple grade levels ahead in every subject because of over-education!  Oh sorry, is my opinion on having your 5 year old in 4 hours of evening classes showing? Sorry about that!

The biggest change, I think, has to do with the quality of her friendships at school.  This is NOT a toot-my-horn session so please don’t read anything into this.   In the past, Kate has had decent friends at school but she wasn’t “close” to any of them.  Her class has all non-native-English speaking girls- mostly Korean girls + one from Taiwan.  The Korean girls all live in the same apartment complex and play together after school and go to hagwon together.   Their moms are close friends and they all hang out a lot.  It has been hard for Kate to break into this group.  Kate is extremely easygoing about lots of things and would just keep trying to be their friend regardless, but it was a challenge.

This year, I made it my goal to break into that group.  We started attending Korean church on Sundays instead of the international fellowship.  We don’t understand the sermons very often, but we get the gist and we follow along with the scripture.  We know some of the songs (although we know the English versions).  It isn’t the perfect fit for us, but it works.  I started inviting some of the moms from her class over for coffee.  And some of those moms attend the Korean church we attend.

Kate is finally making closer friends.  I still don’t think it is easy for her because she has to work twice as hard to maintain those friendships.  It isn’t that the other girls are mean or anything like that- but it is easier to be friends with kids who speak your native language- and that makes sense.

But I’m so happy to see the fruits of this effort finally coming out.  We’ve gone to a couple different friends’ houses, had playdates, had them over… Kate even spent the night at a friend’s house in December.  Every Sunday, she goes to Sunday school with 3 of her school classmates.  They translate for her and sit with her.

At Korean church, you eat lunch at church after the service.  The meal is provided for you by the church.  So each week we share lunch with a couple families.  It has been so good for helping us understand Korean culture and helping us all develop those deeper friendships.   Keith even has a dad (of one of his students) who wants him to teach him golf at the local indoor simulated screen golf place.

The unexpected blessings are nice too.  Two of Kate’s classmates’ moms came over and translated for me with my neighbor last week- we shared lunch and coffee and they helped me get to know my new neighbor a bit better.

And some of my students and Keith’s students attend this church and have commented that they appreciate the effort we are making to understand and appreciate their culture.  We are definitely the only non-Korean family attending this church!  And I think this shows these families that we’re willing to take that step, and they respect and it and appreciate it and in response they include us in things that we might otherwise not be a part of.

Living overseas means we have to take that extra cultural step toward community and understanding.  And I’m so happy that it is paying off with Kate’s increased school happiness and confidence.  I don’t know if we will stay at this church forever.   But it has helped for today, for now, for this year.

Eliza’s grade level has a ton of western, native English speaking girls and it has been so easy for her to make friends.  She’s had friends over a lot because they lived in our apartment complex.  She has best friends that she runs around with, skipping and holding hands… and Kate has often been that third wheel, the younger sister tagging along.

Last week, we were at a Japanese restaurant with one of Kate’s friends and her parents.  After the meal, Kate and YouNa were walking to the escalator holding hands, twirling, and giggling.   It was the evidence I needed that this has all been worth it.

So yeah, Kate’s still in school.  And liking it a lot more.

Compared to the insanity of the current northeastern US snowfalls, I consider our snow here to be a mini-snow.  Or even a mini-mini-snow.  But anyway, we got 1 or 2 inches the other day.  It may snow a bit more this week, but of course nothing like the 2 feet + other parts of the world are getting!

But the girls were excited about the mini-snow so we took out some cookie sheets (we later bought big round plastic “washing tubs” that people use to wash their clothes and used them… they were even better…).

We have a great area to walk around in the new place.  There are several pedestrian only zones that make for a good safe walk.  Right in the middle of the complex there is an oblong “pond” thing that is currently ice.  There are some restaurants and other things that overlook the water that might be good to try in the spring.  The red round building below appears to be the apartment management facility and it sits in the middle of the pond.  Our apartment building, btw, is the white building on the far left side of the photo below.

There are lots of little stores on the first floors of the apartment buildings, so going for a walk has built-in entertainment.

We particularly like this toy store- and Eric James (Keith’s brother), I think this means you have to come visit!!

Side note: Nice Santa!!

So, I have one more set of outside pics that must be shared, but first I’ll show a few pics of inside our apartment.

This is the dining room.  The boxes were gone about 2 hours after I took this pic but I was too lazy to take another one.  Just imagine no boxes, ok?

On the left side at the end of that hallway is our kitchen…. we don’t have room in the kitchen for the refrigerators, so I have them in the entry hallway there. I tell myself it isn’t that my kitchen is too small… it is that I have a wrap-around kitchen. It is the latest in home design, you know?

I haven’t shown our office yet because it isn’t very interesting.  And it still needs some love.  Like, a lot of love.  It is where our dryer is for now (they forgot to put an outlet on the balcony for it) and it is also where everything we haven’t sorted yet is currently living.

Our bedroom… in case you are wondering, the green thing is a frog-shaped humidifier.  Gotta love living in Asia.   It can be hard to find things that are “boring” looking when it comes to your appliances!

Our living room… I was aiming for a celery green/chocolate combo here.  I hope it works with the orangey-yellow floors.

Finally, the outside pics.  There is an exercise facility/gym in our apartment complex.  It is called Just.  I don’t know why the name is Just.  It JUST is.  Haha.

They have 3 mini-slogans at Just.  I will share them with you.

So that’s not bad, right?

And stretching isn’t a bad thing…

Ahhh, yes, my favorite. I’m thinking about making this the motto of our home.  We could greet people at the door with this gem.  It would make them feel, I don’t know, welcome?

Have a great day.  We’re enjoying our Chinese New Year break and trying to completely unpack and settle in.  Well, between fireworks, that is.  They’re slowly starting up and I’m sure they’ll be full scale by next Sunday (the 14th) which is both Valentine’s Day AND Chinese New Year this year!