8/31/10

One year ago today we flew half way around the world.

Leo had no idea we were coming.

We could not wait to see him. Hug him. Love him forever.

Our little three & counting was about to become all accounted four.

Until next time...typhoons & leos, oh my!!!

the cottage: beach time

"really mom, you're going to post too many pictures!"

the weather was so great during our time at the cottage that there was not a day we weren't able to head down to the beach.  that was good news then...but now...i am finding it nearly impossible to pick out the best of the beach photos.  there's swimming in the water pictures. there's pictures with water guns. there's snack-time beach pictures.  there's "get buried in the sand pictures". there's kayak pictures.  there's wet and sandy boy pictures.  there's too many pictures!!

the beach and the water was a whole new field for drew to enjoy this year.  my little man could race up and down that beach all day long if we let him.  (and let me tell you, it was not easy to beat him - i don't think i ever did!) and, those swim lessons...they really did give him confidence in the water! drew loved jumping waves and diving to catch balls in the "deep" water.  (while this year we didn't have so much beach, we did have nice shallow water thanks to a perfectly positioned sand bar. perfect!)

i call leo 'bug'.  i do not know when or how this started...he does not look, act, or smell like a bug.  but, somehow, he's my bug.  our time at the cottage has made it all perfectly clear...'bug' is short for 'waterbug'!! leo loves the water.  he screams "water" whenever he sees it now - the lake, a river, a sprinkler, in a cup, or coming from the faucet.  leo showed no fear...running into the water, floating, kicking, just loving every second he could be in it, collecting it, or dumping it.  it was a lot of fun watching him in "his element" an element we all just discovered he loved so dearly.

i hope these pics capture the fun and silliness we had on the beach throughout the week...in no particular order, here we go!

attempting to make sunscreen application fun

notice, leo has two buckets - the more water the better

"sweet! i'm loaded and ready to go!"

pondering the take down

"he he he..."

"this is so clever, can i really do it?!"

"attack!"

just a little bit of sand...everywhere...to this day

swimming in the water got a little too boring

thanks for the show boys!

i have no clue what this is all about

buckets are for sand and water...but also make great drums!

not sure if i am part of the band or just a groupie

bananas on the beach?!?

boys turned monkeys

aren't they hilarious?

um...the banana ended up in the sand...and an attempt was made to still eat it. no more monkeys eating bananas on the beach

one day goggles were mandatory on the beach, if your name was drew

more snacks...and a bit of brotherly love

teamwork. i love it...cuz i can relax a bit in my chair!

watch out!

this bug requires a pillow when being buried

coolest bubble maker ever...or pretend musical instrument of some sort

gee, wonder who will win this race?!?

future jeju island surfer. no doubt about it.

what great writing skills you have leo!

begging to go up and get a swimsuit on

before their voyage

"enough with the pictures, let's get this boat in the water!"

leo, not ready to come in to shore yet

riding the waves in

nice to see drew helping leo up the min-dune; instead of pushing him down it

leo, helping drew stay warm - with sand

time to attempt to get all that sand off (so wish i could have posted the bare bottomed pics!!)

until next time...when i've got some two wheel excitement for you!

the cottage: the artistic side

i am really not sure what’s taken me so long to post about our trip to the cottage.  maybe it’s the fact that to upload all the pictures and write about all the fun we had would simply be a sad reminder that it’ll be another twelve months before we are there again.  what’s the quote…”better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all?”  i am quite certain that tennyson wrote those words referring to a person and not a place.  but, that’s the attitude i am trying to adopt about the cottage these days.  without a doubt, we once again loved our time at the cottage and my soul has been filled with love knowing that drew and leo really embraced their time there by soaking in sun and surf…accomplishing things they’ve never done before…and even shedding tears with me as we drove down the driveway to head home.

but, without further ado…here is the first of a series of posts about our nine sunny and warm days in west michigan. (have i told you how much i love west michigan?!?)

we started our trek to michigan later than we thought we would, departing at 5pm with still a need to stop for dinner...but in the end it all worked out - pulling into the cottage at 5:30am allowed for lots of quiet sleeping in the back seat.  it worked so well, we took that approach for the drive back home too (thanks for the suggestion beth!!)

since leo was up about two hours later, we took it easy friday morning and put on a little art show.  drew helped arrange the art and determined the price of each piece.  the show was a huge success...the art was loved by all, both drew and leo made over $2 and granny, pop, uncle mike, and aunt lindsay got some fun art to display at their house or in their office!  (actually, the show was so much fun...we're thinking of hosting an art show here at home with some of the neighbor friends.)

later in the week, drew got to attend the hope summer repertory theatre with his grandparents.  in the past we've seen click, clack, moo and busy town...this year it was how i became a pirate.  drew had a great time and came back to the cottage with a very cool pirate hat and a HSRT t-shirt to remind him about the good time he had at the show throughout the year.


the city of holland puts on some amazing family events throughout the summer...concerts on fridays, farmers market on wednesdays and saturdays, and street performers on thursday nights. we had a lot of fun checking out the musicians, jugglers, dancers, and hoola hoopers.  we gave drew a few dollars and some coins and told him he could give the performers money if he thought they were good.  it was fun to see which performers he liked most and gave the most money too.  without a doubt though, drew's favorite act was the juggler when he juggled fire (he's still talking about it) and leo really enjoyed meeting some puppies - imagine that! for me, i loved seeing the amazement in my boys faces during the evening...but i also enjoyed being in such a great community.  a community that, much to my surprise, was full of families just like ours - i seriously lost count of the number of adoptive families enjoying the entertainment that evening.  it was an awesome feeling to be a part of that...and feel "normal" and easily accepted.

drew and leo were just in awe!

two rockin' musicians

drew's juggling hero

leo and his new friend - no fear!

listening to "the beatles"

some seriously talented hoola hoop loopin'!

so happy with my boys!!!

 until next time...when i'll have some beach boys for you!

ready!

phew....this past week flew by...and we are just about completely packed and ready to hit the road at 5am tomorrow for the airport. it really won't be long now before we are on the plane...in the air...and in the same city with Leo!

we are not completely ready...since we JUST found out when we will see Leo for the first time...and JUST found out that our best laid plans to go to Busan on Friday the 3rd have been completely turned upside down...but we're working the new plan...and here's some details!!

Wednesday, September 1:

arrive in Seoul (by the way, that's our engagement anniversary - if there is just a thing - 9 years ago Damon proposed and I am so glad he did...and so proud to call him my husband)

Thursday, September 2:

MEET LEO @ 9am!! (i cannot even tell you how excited i am to finally, finally meet my little boy...excited and nervous, of course)

HEAD TO BUSAN on the 11:15 train - visit 'Mo Sung Won' and tour where Leo's birth mom stayed (we also plan to hit the beach and maybe the fish market before heading back on the fast train that evening)

Friday, September 3:

Sit by pool (the pool Drew is going to be so excited about - but we won't disclose until the 3rd or he might want to postpone the visit with Leo and cancel the trip to Busan)

That's what we know so far...my head is spinning just thinking about the hours and hours and hours we have coming up in cars, planes, taxis, and trains in the next 3 to 4 days. Oh please let all this traveling work out ok...especially with the Drew-man.

Before I go shower, paint my toenails, empty the dishwasher, pick up clumps of cat hair from the carpet because I didn't have time to vacuum, and carry the last of the way too many suitcases downstairs...I'd like to leave you with some of the thoughts swirling in my head - some random and some just from the very deepest part of my heart.

1. I have the best and most amazing friends!! Thank you to all of you who helped me this past week...be it supportive words when I found out I did not qualify for FMLA due to my part-time employment (it all worked out - I get my 12 weeks); the help packing; the kind words and hugs of congratulations and good luck; the thoughtful gifts; the offers to help out while we are away...it's all been so thoughtful and so appreciated. Thank you!

2. A huge thank you to my parents. Even though hundreds of miles away, they helped us prepare for this trip so much. Thanks mom for all gathering all kinds of good sightseeing info and instilling me with strength and confidence that everything will work out (and for pointing out that our Travel Call did indeed fall on a special day - the anniversary of my Grandma's death 14 years ago - thanks Granny for giving your blessing of Leo from above). And, thanks dad for the awesome "what time is it where" spreadsheet, the research on train tickets, and for the lesson in adapters, converters, and not blowing up our electronics while in Korea. I love you both.

3. I tried really hard to learn some Korean for this trip. I failed miserably. Drew on the other hand just might be translating for us by the end of the trip. He's got hello, thank you, goodbye, and his numbers down. Maybe he can teach me something during all those hours on the plane.

4. I have visited the doctor more in the last week than I have in the past year. Once to get my Hepatitis A vaccination (thanks Kelly C.) and again today to get a prescription for a nasty case of Poison Ivy/Oak/Something. Needless to say, I will be wearing dress pants to meet Leo - no one needs to see that mess of a rash.

5. Batman, Robin, two bad guys, Batman's motorcycle, a Lego Jeep, two Lego guys, a Lego house, six matchbox cars, four "Jack & Annie" books, go fish, war, a Leapster, crayons, coloring books, magnetic play boards, the blue blanket, small monkey max, and snacks are just some of the lucky toys that get to travel to Korea with Drew.

6. There are some amazing families in Seoul right now waiting to bring their child home - they've provided valuable insight into our own trip and I wish them all the best in their journeys home and really hope to meet them in person someday soon.

7. I love my husband more than ever. His patience. His sense of humor. His love of life. I am so blessed.

8. I cannot wait to hear Leo's voice and the sound of his laugh. And look into those beautiful brown eyes.

Thursday...9am in Seoul (that's Wednesday 8pm Detroit...7pm Minneapolis)

Until next time....we'll be trying to get a good night sleep. LEO...we're coming!!!