Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Terrible Weather and Neighbors...

Bad weather is not really "new" news here in Korea... But today the Yongsan area was hit pretty hard with flash flooding. I thought I would share a few pictures from their website.





So as you can see, it's pretty bad. I'm just praying that none of these cars get water damaged! It rains every other day here but today was especially bad. I'm hoping my birthday bash down at Jeju Island is rain free!!!!

As for the neighbors part of the title... We got a new family to our building over the weekend. Never good because along with moving comes the noise from moving furniture and things... but this was not the case with this particular family. They have several small children and a dog. I'm sure you can see where I'm heading with this. They live directly above us and they never seem to be quiet. It's better during the day but at night the noise carries on until at least 11:30. The children make all the noise. What good parent lets their child/children run around being that chaotic at 11:30PM? Even now as I type this they are having what seems to be a rock hammering contest... I'm at a loss as to what do. I've tried to give them the weekend to get "settled in" but I'm feeling this is going to be ongoing. I think tomorrow I will have to go talk to the landlord.

This is the main reason why I hate being in an apartment. I do not want to be rude or mean to this new family but I also want my sanity and my sleep. Common sense is a punishment I believe. It's a punishment because, apparently, no one else in the world has it. Tyler, luckily, can sleep through just about anything. I just wish they would realize other people live in the building too. Is that too much to ask?

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Karaoke!

This title speaks for itself really... but we've been testing out Karaoke lately and have had LOTS of fun! It also helps to hear a friends great voice. I wish I could sing. Don't get me wrong, I try, but I fail miserably. Here are a few pictures of us and our good friend Joel!



 

 

Joel and I get along great because we love all the same music. He's a BIG Sinatra fan... Which is so awesome. He sings him quite a bit when we go out and I love it. Him and Tyler pick on eachother the way boys do and I can't even think about having a bad evening. They are both so funny! We are lucky to have such a light hearted and funny friend here in Korea. Hope you all liked this post cause it's filled with our fun times together. Hoping to have many more!


Thursday, September 9, 2010

So Much "To-Do"

  1. Order Missy a soft sided "house" for the plane ride back home. (That meet the exact specifications!)
  2. Call the travel office and verify we have everything we need in order to get Miss back and forth.
  3. Finish the last new items on the Christmas shopping list.
  4. Save for going home.
  5. Finish writing letters back home.
  6. Continue diet and exercise regime.
  7. Swim lessons.
  8. Try out new healthy dinner options.
  9. Start eating breakfast.
  10. Organize the closets and 
  11. Do paper work!
Overwhelming?? Answer: YUP!

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Dream Big!

I have been consumed lately with the thought of buying a home. Now I must be realistic, this will not happen for several years but I think it's completely fine to let the mind wonder and dream! Tyler, however, isn't interested in the slightest. He could care less. Which means, I guess, that I will doing nearly the whole process by my self. That's fine... I can just get what I want easier! And since I know this blog is for myself... It's okay to put my personal dreams on here :) Here are a few things I would love to have in our home of the future...
Style: Colonial. I think this best represents, to me, what a home should look like. I hate ranch simply because everyone lives in one.
Location: Liberty/KC area. It's big enough for me seeing as how I came from a town of 500! It's layout is perfect and has so many things to do and see. Plus it's cheap and close to our families. I would love to have a vacation home as well and if we play our cards right, we can have the best of both worlds!
Layout:2800-3000 sq. ft. At least 3 bedroom and 2 baths. A must have is huge closet. This is non negotiable. I love bay windows and crown molding. Also a big back yard and a fire place. And a back porch for a swing and BBQ grill.

So now that you get the gist of what I like... Here's a a few pictures to bring it all together...



Don't you just feel, "at home" when you look at it!? I sure do. We just have to do a little time and get a big reward :) I'm very lucky to have such a good provider.

Hope you all like my little post about my big dream.

A few things I've learned about Korea.

  1. Men and women walk out of their shoes because they cannot afford the proper size.
  2. Many Korean's are bow legged due to Rickets disease (a vitamin D difficiency) because not drinking enough milk. I've never seen a full gallon of milk here...
  3. Nearly all meat they consume is high in fat.
  4. ALL women wear high heels everywhere.
  5. Image is very important but cleanliness is not.
  6. They eat dog!
  7. Korea has no natural resources.
  8. A typical work week for them is 80-100 hours. If your boss is still at work, your obligated to be there as well.
  9. For 3 days in August nearly all Korean's go on vacation at the same time.
  10. A typical "vacation" is a trip to the water park.
  11. They do not travel much.
  12. Their power lines are all above ground and very tangled making the city unnecessarily ugly.
  13. Public transit is a way of life. You can take it to anywhere in South Korea!
  14. They spit a lot!
  15. They have a traditional "ice cream" dish that contains red beans.
  16. Good service at a restaurant is considered a lot of food and little service. ex: Lots of hot peppers but no refill on your glass of "mool" or water.
  17. Stomach cancer is very prominent here due to all the spice they consume.
  18. When they eat fish... Nothing is wasted. I mean nothing.
  19. Korean highways are NOT user friendly.
  20. Everything is cheap.
  21. Their is little variety of food here. If your pallet isn't suited to this... Your out of luck.
  22. At McDonald's you can get a shrimp or bulgogi burger :)
  23. Ice cream at McD's cost about 25 cents American.
  24. A traditional Korean restaurant is where you sit around a grill and cook your own food.
  25. This Korean meal has been labeled "beef on a leaf" by our Army boys, and it is grilling various meats like pork or beef, along with mushrooms, whole garlic, onions and then putting in on a piece of lettuce with kimchi or pickled cucumbers and shoving the entire thing in your mouth.
  26. Dinner etiquette is non existent. ex: Slurping your food shows the cook how much you like the food. They also ALWAYS talk with their mouth full.
  27. When you shop at a Korean "Wal-Mart", Chop sticks have replaced forks and knives.
  28. You can buy anything counterfeit here. Watches, movies, coats, purses, shoes, scarves and the list goes on and on.
  29. Traffic is hellacious 95% of the time.
  30. Traffic symbols are a suggestion and not a rule. Honking is not considered rude.
  31. Cops are only around to help out with accidents. Their are many!
  32. Police are Military service are mandatory for at least two years for all males at age 18.
  33. Although Korea is not our favorite place we are glad we got this experience :)
  34. They drive on the sidewalks and park there as well.
  35. Taxi drivers are insane!
That is all for now. I'm sure I've left out a few things but for the most part I'm sure you catch the drift. Hope you enjoyed this post! Thanks for stopping by!

Monday, September 6, 2010

The Weekend

Tyler and I had a very fun filled 4 day weekend. It included a Norybong (korean karaoke) with Joel Smith. We started that evening with dinner and then went to the Norybong and stayed until around 12 then traveled across the street to get our 2nd dinner... Lotteria (korean McDonalds) I however don't have any good pictures to post but it was the most fun I've had in a loooong while!

Our next endeavor was a BIG breakfast we hosted for our friend Morris. We really enjoy his company and always look forward to his company. I fixed eggs, bacon, toast, pancakes and home made O'Brien potatoes. It was super delicious... Even if I did make it ;)

The only downer was that Tyler caught a cold that I may or may have not given to him... So being the good wife and caregiver that I am, I filled him up with meds and let him nap... A lot.

And lastly today, Tyler and I dropped Morris back off at his barracks and then hit the PX where I got some new lip gloss, eyeliner, a sheet set AND a new super cute RL sweater. I'm the luckiest girl to have a great man like Tyler! I love him more than words.

That is all I have at the moment... I'm off to give Missy a haircut and finish the laundering. Tyler has one more day off then it's back to work for a short work week of 3 days. Hope you enjoyed my little post! Till next time, tata!

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Typhoon!

With in the 24 hours of my last post a Typhoon developed in the Yellow Sea to our west. It was a category 3. It hit sooner than expected at 7 this morning. Lots of power outages and broken structures but us and our apartment are just fine. There is supposed to be another strong storm coming in tonight. Oh how we love Korea!

Also I've been sick the last 2 days... Yay.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Gym Rat

So it's September first! That means today was our first "lunch time work out" with our good friends the Beckers. Today was upper body so it was my favorite :) Hoping I will have brought sexy back by my 23rd birthday in October! 5 day's a week should do it. Love working out with my husband. He's a great motivator.

In other news... Still looking at school options. The one is Topeka is still on the top of my list but I think I will tackle medical billing and coding for the time being. I like working in an office setting because it's not so crazy and you don't have to worry about codes or anything like that. It's also a good traveling profession and Lord knows us Army wives need that!

My swimming classes are dwindling. I only have 2, 4 year old girls now. Every one else just kinda leaves me to figure it out for myself. I guess this means I will have a lot more time to focus on school! Which is awesome!

We also have 95% of our Christmas shopping done! I do believe we are getting, "older and wiser." We get so excited when we start thinking about being HOME for an entire month! It seems to lift our spirits when anything bad happens here in Korea.

As far as Tyler's OCS process... It's finally starting to move along. I made him a deal that as soon as he got his acceptance letter with his class date that we would go get him a shiny, brand new car! I totally think he deserves it. He never asks for anything and I only want him to have the best when he does. So what ever his choice, I will be very happy.

Oh and I saved the best for last!.... We are going to Jeju Island for my birthday! We will spend 3 days in a luxury hotel on the beach. Can't wait for this get away. I honestly can't think of a better way to spend a birthday. Seafood, sand and sun. Feel free to be jealous :P

Guess that is all for now. Be looking for another update soon... Til' then, tata~!