Jaemin is one!

Okay, so technically, in Korea, he's already 2. A tid bit for anyone who doesn't know, when you're born in Korea you're already 1.  When the new year comes everyone turns the next year, so Jaemin turned 2 then already.  You don't really age on your actual birthday.  Kind of confusing when someone from Korea tells you how old they are because sometimes they change it for Americans and tell us their age by our culture and sometimes they don't.

Our sweet baby boys turned 1 yesterday.  I can't believe that just 6 months ago we had just found out we were going to be parents again and now our baby is 1.  Other than being sick the day before his birthday it was great.  He was in a great mood all day.  He laughed all day and tried to take a couple of steps.

We had Js TOL party in the evening complete with; cake, ice cream, deli meat, chips and bulgogi.  There wasn't much bulgogi left at all.  It was a huge hit.  All 3 grandparents were there, Loa and Js Godparents.  Since we'd had illness in the house we asked some not to come so they wouldn't get sick (or have their kids get sick).  J got plenty of present though.  The room was packed with toys in the end and I don't think he knew what to do with all his toys.  Though he really does love to hammer away on his xylophone.  Apparently, like his sisters, he likes music.

Jaemin selected a spool of thread and 10,000 Won from his TOL table.  This means he will be wealthy and have a long life.  He wore his gorgeous hanbok that his foster mother sent with him.  I loved his birthday too.  It was so fun to sing happy birthday to him all day long!  We had a little problem with the cake, but I'm trying to forget that.  :)

Here are some pictures from the party.



















Thanks, Anita, for the great 1st birthday tshirt!!







And this is the next day.  He also had a great time with his balloons this morning, though he got a big tangled as he crawled with them in hand.

Jaemin's Homecoming Video...finally

Since all we have is a short video of meeting Jaemin in Korea and not actually bringing him home like we did the girls, I put some photos together for his homecoming video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxzyenYOVF8

Paying for adoption?

Okay, so I know people wonder, and Brian's friend outright asked not so long ago, how we keep paying for adoptions.  I know I, for one, always thought adoption was for the rich.  That's how the movies portrayed families/parents anyways.  I just assumed we couldn't, which was part of the reason it took us so long.  It took me a long time to take the time to sit and research enough to know that it was possible if you really were creative and tried hard.

So, yes, we make well under $100,000/year with our two incomes combined...think less than 50...after taxes.  We have no credit card debt.  We've always bought only what we could pay for at the end of the month and when we paid off our cars the last time we intended to never get a car loan again, so we have pretty old vehicles, minus our primary ride.  Granted, if some of them died now we might have to get a loan, but again can't afford that, so we'd have to get creative yet again.  So with only our house to pay for, we've saved every penny and dime we could over the past 7-8 years in anticipation of each adoption, with the exception of the last; since you couldn't prepare for that.  So Brian was right in telling him part of it was because his wife is careful with our money.

The other things we've done is sold a pool table we had years ago, cash out our life insurance and buy term instead, a small amount was through fundraising and we applied for grants like crazy each time.   We were also loaned a portion of the money for the first two adoptions by family which we paid off with our tax credit the first year.  The first two adoptions were estimated to cost a little under $20,000 for everything including finalization.  We managed for $15,000 or less due to grants and fee reductions (you do have to ask)  since they were special needs adoptions and our income and circumstances qualified.  The last was estimated to cost closer to $40,000 and I think we ended up closer to $30,000 in the end with a gift for part of it, the rest of our savings for part of it and a large portion was refinanced and cashed out of our house.  We took all we could out of our house, to 80% anyways.   We do, I guess, have a loan for our adoption, so to speak, but we felt this was worth everything to do.  In the end, our loan rate was lower and we saved in interest what we borrowed for the adoption....win, win to us!

The point being, we came out debt free as far as adoptions go.  We have no savings left, but every dime has always been worth it.  We have always been in the habit of being very frugal; aka cheap!  It's actually become the lifestyle over time.  But, without being this way, a family on our income could not afford adoption.  So, can it work for you?  Yes!  If you want something you just have to work for it.  It was stressful a lot of times.  We had no idea where some of the money was going to come from.  The first adoption was 12 months, start to finish.  The 2nd was 6 months and the 3rd was 2 months.  We've never had a lot of time to come up with money, but it was always there through all these avenues, when we needed it.  I guess, in ways, I can't truly explain how we afforded the adoptions.  Things just worked out the way they were supposed to because we followed Him and His plans for us.

So if you believe in God and believe this is what He wants for you, believe He will bring you through it.  If you don't believe so much, then try and make it work.  You may just end up believing more firmly in God, in the end.




Lisa

Big brother is So sweet!

Apparently, Chase had to write on why he is special, in his daily journal for 4th grade.  His teacher wrote, "You are very kind!", so I had to make sure I had time to read it.  He wrote "I am special because my dog got ran offer and still lived.  I have a pet turtle and lizard.  I have a big front yard to play football and baseball.  I have two sisters and one brother from Korea.  I have a PS2 and a PS1"

Now, I'm not sure about this turtle and lizard.  Lord knows he chases enough of them down and we do find them from time to time stashed in buckets and other little houses they've made outside, but I wasn't aware of these two.  :)  I asked him why he wasn't special because he had an older brother and he simply told me "he's not adopted from Korea, they make me special"  It is sweet that he thinks himself special because of them.  I wonder how many adoptees have had a sibling, biological of the parents, who thought so much of their siblings.  He's always the one most quiet about those kind of feelings, so it's sweet that he wrote it.

Proud mommy.

The days of summer are ending..

The kids are in school.  The pool has been taken down, we've had our last summer barbeque; even the weather is slowly cooling for the year.  The kids are able to play outside more due to the coolness and it seems more peaceful as summer settles.  Fall is busy with soccer and football, but it's a different atmosphere and sometimes doesn't seem quite as rushed.  The house is quiet and it's unusual here.  The older kids are outside cleaning up with their dad and playing while the littlest are napping quietly in their beds.  I actually have a moment or two for thoughts, that is rare.  The house is in order after we cleaned, but we know it will not stay that way.  I'm still working on letting that go as the kids get older and it gets harder and the house is more crowded with 7 of us here.  Sometimes, though, if only for a day, it's good to be in order.

Next week it will just be me and the younger 3.  The big boys are going with their dad to the cabin for a day to fish and have fun.  We could go, but the idea of 5 kids and a dog doesn't sound that relaxing.  Maybe once Jaemin is a little older or can at least walk we'll go.  Probably next year.  I don't know that it would be too easy bringing Dash and keeping track of him.  But, we need to dogsit for a few days.  The kids and I will try to do things just the 4 of us.  The girls can have some fun with, just, mom while little man sleeps.  I think we're all looking forward to a little reprieve from each other.  There's no getting away from anyone in this size house.  :)

Our summer feels like it came and went so quickly.  It started with Jaemin arriving and is ending with him feeling like he's been here and we've known him forever.  He feels like he was always meant to be here and always been part of the plan.  I haven't felt as much peace about these aspects of my life as I do with him here.  I think a part of me, somehow, always knew there was another child out there for us.  I was always saving my leave at work and money in case we got this kind of call or decided to adopt again down the road.  Though, I knew deep down we really wouldn't adopt again without a little push.  That call in March was our push.  It was all we needed to feel complete.  I always wondered how moms and dads knew their family was complete.  Was it truly a gut feeling that they instinctively knew or was it giving up because they really didn't think more children (no matter how they come) were possible?  I think that's why I always said we were complete.  I felt that if God wanted us to have more it would happen and it wouldn't be difficult or hard, but he would make it clear.  It wasn't immediately clear when we found out about Jaemin, but it was shortly after.

Today, I see the miracles it took for Jaemin to be with us.  If Brian hadn't done so well after his accident, Korea wouldn't have allowed Jaemin to come to us.  If the accident had been any later than it was we wouldn't known enough of what the outcome was going to be to accept the referral.  If that person in our life hadn't given us some of the money to complete the adoption or we couldn't have refinanced the house for some of the adoption money we wouldn't have been able to bring Jaemin home either.  It all worked out as if everything were happening on a timeline specifically orchestrated in advance.  I can't think back and think of anything that I would change.  That's when you know it's completely right and you followed God's promting to do what He has determined for you.

Lisa

Are you a carrier?

I am.  :)

It always looked like such a yuppie thing to do, years ago, to me.  When our first daughter came home 6 years ago she came home with a carrier.  I thought, okay, I'll try this out.  It hurt, she hated it, I quit!  Then when our 2nd daughter came home 3 years ago I'd read how good it is for them to be carried more to help with bonding.  I tried the hip hammock shortly.  It hurt my hips and shoulders....exactly what it wasn't supposed to do.  I then got a Baby Hawk and loved it.  It was very comfortable.  It was the kind you tie and I got very good at getting baby on my back and getting it wrapped around me and her all by myself.  But, by the time she was 2 I thought it would be easier to have buckles and she still liked being carried in the "backpack" as she called it, so I sold my Baby Hawk and got an Ergo.  I've had it every since.  I carried her until she was about 3.  She would bring it to me and tell me "backpack".  I stuffed it in the van so we'd have it with us and apparently that's where I left it.

When we found out we were having another baby I happened to find it back.  So glad I still had it.  Jaemin loves to be carried.  He feels very safe when we're out and about and he knows no one will take him from me if I wear him.  I swear it's his favorite place to sleep too.  If we go to Walmart around nap time, he goes on my front and sleeps through most of the shopping.  If I'm doing dishes in the evening he goes on my back.  Sometimes he sleeps and sometimes he doesn't.  Tonight he slept the whole time I cleaned the kitchen.  Sometimes he gets so excited just at the sight of me getting it out because he thinks we're going somewhere.  I even wore him at my sister's wedding...yep in my strapless gown.  Hey, the gowns were champaigne with black sashes and the black belt on the carrier happened to hit me exactly where the sash was and the carrier is khaki (with bugs).  :)  He was a happy little camper all day at the wedding and all night at the dance.  He went on my back and away we went.

Never in a million did I see me being one of those moms walking into a store wearing a baby.  Always seemed sort of hippyish.  :)  But, it's SO much easier.  I have to get things done sometimes.  With 5 kids and working full-time, no house cleaner or cook (except Brian and I), we have to get things done ourselves.  The carrier allows me to hold Jaemin, pat his bottom or his feet like he likes, give him hugs, etc. while I'm doing other things.  I probably wouldn't have been so against them if I'd known how comfortable a good one could be.  And....I still get hugs this way.  When Jaemin's on my back he grabs my sides with his hands and gives me hugs.  That's so much better than him standing at the gate while I do dishes and just watching.

Lisa

HAD TO MAKE ONE MORE POST

JAEMIN HUGGED ME!!!  A real hug!  He's not been feeling well the past week.   His teeth have really been hurting him, but today the one that was trying to come through did and he was in a much better mood.  Brian and I have been up with him at least 4 times every night for the past week and sometimes he's up for awhile.  He would just cry and cry even after medicine to make him feel better.  I felt so bad for him.  Tonight I was kissing the girls goodnight and I had him on my lap.  He laid his head against my chest while I was on Chelsi's bed and really snuggled in.  So I took him to his bedroom next.  Usually, we listen to music and I just hold him in his blanket for awhile until he relaxes enough to go to sleep.  He doesn't usually want to directly face us.  Tonight he wanted nothing but to directly face me.  He put his arms up on my shoulders and laid his head down.  I squeezed him with a little hug and he squeezed back.  He kept doing it until he fell asleep.  Nights like this I could just hold onto him forever.  He just made me want to cry because it was what I've been waiting for and working for and wanting for 3 1/2 months.  He really returned love.  He wasn't playing a game, he was loving back.  I think with him not feeling well and us being up with him at all hours and taking him to bed, etc. he decided to trust us.  Jaemin absolutely made my entire night!  I was really starting to worry a bit.  He just missed his foster mother so much and I wasn't sure he'd trust us.  It just seemed to take so long compared to the girls.  He's really getting there now.  He's become a momma's boy and likes to cuddle so much more than ever and I LOVE it!

Nothing is better in a momma's heart than her little boy.  Jaemin is my little man and I love him so much!

Lisa

Another email to Korea

We received another email from Jaemin's foster family.  It's such a blessing to get emails like this.  We've never had this opportunity before.  I have to get them translated, so it takes a bit before I can read any, but it's still nice to have them.  I'm trying to learn to do some of the translating myself.  I got quite a few words, but there are rules I just don't understand.  I'm doing better and understanding more each time I try.  I can now translate the characters to Romanized letters, but then I get somewhat lost when looking some words up.  One character may change the sound of the next making it a little harder for me.  I hope to one day be able to write back in Hangul myself...without translation.

Youn Su, please have patience with me.  I would like to continue writing if you don't mind.

Lisa

7 years ago half way around the world

a little girl was born.  We had just had our homestudy completed and sent to Korea just days before she was born and when we received her referral in January of the next year, we knew she was meant to be ours.  Kaelin (HaeBin) has been home for 6 1/2 years now and we love her!  On top of today being her birthday, she lost her 5th tooth....after many weeks of wiggling.  :)

Happy Birthday Binah!



Kaelin wanted to try on Jaemin's Reds bandana.

We're getting some birth stuff!

I emailed our agency and asked them to ask Korea if the agency outside of Seoul had any pics of Jaemin prior to 5 months old.  They told us theydoubt it because they generally do not take pictures on intake.  All the other Korean agencies do, but oh well, I guess.

We had a message today from our US agency that Korea didn't have any pictures, but do have his footprints from the hospital.  How awesome!  With adoption you have to be excited for every little thing you get and this is GREAT!  With Chelsi, we actually had feet molds her foster mother had done and framed for us.  Beautiful!
Lisa

What a great day for email!

About a month or so after Jaemin came home, I was going through his photo album and found something written in Korean in the very back at the bottom.  When I had it translated, I found out it was the foster family's address.  I wrote them a letter and sent a couple of pictures and had it translated and mailed it off as quickly as possible.  Today, we had an email from the foster family.  It was so sweet and they sent pictures of him from his time with them, that we didn't have.

Apparently, the reason he's so infatuated with remote controls is that he was already playing with them in Korea.  They sent us a picture of him with his remote.  :)

Hoping for constant contact with them in the future.

Lisa

Oh my boy Jaemin

He's truly a blessing.  A few months ago our lives were turned upside down and we were unsure if we were ready to have another baby in the house again.  Now, he's been home almost 3 months.  The first month was terribly hard.  He cried hard at bedtime and scratched and pinched and hit me every single night.  The naps we pretty much let him decide so he wouldn't have to go through that during the day too.  Every night we were up 3-6 times patting his back or giving him a bottle.  We needed to make sure he knew we were there no matter what.  We pulled him closer when he hit and stayed through the crying.  Don't get me wrong, there were moments of hesitation when you think, what did we do.  I know I wondered if we were really up to this more than once.  Now that we're getting into our new routine it feels like a normal life again.  He's really making progress.  Attachment  is a process, so we're not there yet.  I think most adopted babies that are not newborns when adopted are not there by this point either.  They have to learn to trust an adult again.  They've been taken away from the other adults they've grown to trust, 1 or more times.

He doesn't just dive in and give us hugs or kisses to often yet, but I slowly see it coming now.  I can sit on the floor with him and he'll crawl over, now, and lay his head on my leg and pat me. He doesn't gaze at me while I feed him a bottle, which worried me a bit at first, but when I take him to his room and rock him to sleep each night we can just stare at each other.  He smiles behind his paci and sometimes he smiles so big it drops out.  He's so sweet at bedtime.  He's not his usual, 100 mile an hour self then. He's my baby boy that I love more than anything in this world.

Blessings come in so many different packages, situations and experiences.  He is definitely one of my many blessings in life.

Oh my little man

Even when he's grumpy or getting up at night, I love him so much!  I take the once or twice he gets up at night as an extra opportunity to hold him a little more.  And grumpy, sometimes I can hold him too...depends on why.  :)  He's just an awesome blessing.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE This man so much.  He gave me such big hugs this morning and it just melts you into pure liquid.

We went to our annual friends' fish/frog fry last night and he did great.  One of the bigger gatherings he's been to since being home.  We brought our little gate (coral) in case he got tired and we could then keep other kids away from him.  We decided, ahead of time, that only the close friends who have been around him a lot in the past months were allowed to hold him so we'd have an easy reason to keep him pretty off limits.  His world is still very small and needs to be so.  So only one of my friends held him for a bit and he flirts with her anyways, so it was fine.   He was in his little gate thing and I went to go get one of the girls something, not too far off, while Brian was frying.  Someone came close enough to the gate to scare him and he made sure he cried loud enough to get everyone's attention immediately.  As soon as I held him, he was fine though.  He's definitely looking for us.  I think he just couldn't see us when she came near and it scared him.

He's truly doing well and I can't imagine our lives, no matter how chaotic, without him.
Lisa

Getting a routine in order

This is my first week back, so I've been taking leave early to make sure Jaemin knows I'm not leaving him.  Not that he's not fine anyways.  I guess since it's grandma's daycare and we've visited so often AND his brothers and sisters are there he seems very adjusted.  The first day he went to her just fine and was content.  Then when I picked him up she'd woke him up for me and he was very groggy and didn't seem to care if I was there or not.  Today I've been a bit worried am I doing this right or not?  Because today, again, he went to her very easily, but didn't want to come back to me.   :(  I think he was interested in what the big kids were eating and he knew who was going to feed him that and with this boy, food comes first!  I picked him up today and his back was to me because grandma was holding him across the room.  I was talking to Chelsi as I entered and grandma said she knew I was there because as soon as he heard my voice he started kicking.  By the time I walked over there he was getting really excited.  :)  Made me feel SO much better!!

I'm so glad to think he just might be adjusting better than the girls did.  I just didn't expect that, but will still treat him as if he's not and use our bonding tools.  He loves being in the carrier anyways.  He can sleep on me while I make supper or do dishes and he's perfectly content to do that.  So am I!  As long as, in the end, he's attached that's all that matters.

Lisa

Starting our daycare transition

Little man went to grandma's today for 1 1/2 hours.  It was torture for me, but he did great!  I miss him so much.  I miss his smiles when he's away and just watching his cute little self crawl around.  I figured he'd do fine since he's so social and he knows who she is and we've visited, but it's always harder on the mom.  He was excited when I came to pick him up which makes me feel better.  Tomorrow we'll do it again, but a tad longer.  :(

I hope we don't lose any of the bond we have.

Lisa

I love this BOY!

My boy.  What can I say....I am firmly ATTACHED to this sweet baby boy!  We've been on this road for 5 weeks now and he's awesome!   He's so much more comfortable now.  When he's tired, he just goes to sleep, on the floor, on me...



He's happy the vast majority of the time now.



He is the so awesome.  He actually slept all the way through the night last night.  Not even up for a little butt pat.  Then he didn't wake until daddy left around 6:30.  He's so punctual about the morning nap too.  He fell asleep on my lap at his usual time.  Don't get me wrong, he has got a temper on him, but he's a little lover boy.  He has my heart and I'm done!

Now, if I could find a way to have enough money to not go back to work or work part time and be with him more. :(

My baby boy/Miracles

seems to really be becoming "my little boy".  I pray this stays when I have to return to work and he goes to daycare.  I'm so thankful I can work part days for a bit to be with him more.  He's starting to really snuggle and trust.  Trust is HUGE!  There's probably a post somewhere in here about that back when Chelsi arrived home.  I can hold him for a bit in his room while we listen to Brahm's and lay him down awake and rub his head, face and bottom and he'll go to sleep shortly after I walk out.  He never even fusses now.  He knows if he does I will come back and rub some more.  He trusts.  Makes me feel SO good!  Even his grumpy isn't as grumpy as it was just a couple of weeks ago.  He's been home 5 weeks now which totally amazes me.  It's starting to feel like we've known him forever already and we only found out 3 1/2 months ago we were even having a baby.

It's amazing the changes a family can go through in a short period of time; good or bad.  We had some rough and rocky last year and some mind-blowing amazing this year.  Trust mind-blowing, amazing miracle.  That's what this feels like.  Even thinking back to visiting Korea last month to get him.  It all felt so surreal and felt like a miracle.  I mean it's a miracle this other Korean agency found us and our two little ones are together as their birth mother wanted.  I so hope she reads our annual letters one day and knows this so she can feel better they will always know each other and love each other.

I think about my life and some of the pain; real pain; loss, fear, anxiety.  But, how many people get to witness these kinds of miracles in their life.  I witnessed a man paralyzed from the neck down walk again.  I witnessed 2 beautiful children born of my husband and I.  I witnessed 3 beautiful children travel all the way from another country to allow us to love them.  I witnessed God putting all of this together and orchestrating all of it regardless of any mistakes we made along the way.  I know there will always be pain in our lives, but I will try so hard to remember these miracles every day of my life.  I know there will always be days when I'm at my wits end due to stress of being a working mother, but I will always try to look at my family and thank God for these incredible miracles.  How on Earth did we get so lucky and deserve to witness this and enjoy these miracles in our lives?  I feel incredibly blessed to have them here with me and feel little fingers around my neck and being hugged by yet another child God has bestowed on us.

Lisa

All's well

Jaemin's attaching quite nicely.  We spend a LOT of time on the floor all day, then dad takes over part of the night so I can get some stuff done and feel productive still.  Then, when he can't I carry him on my back.  When we make our Walmart runs he rides on the front and falls asleep in the store every time.  :)  We're somewhat getting on a schedule.  At least he takes a decent mid-day nap now and sometimes takes a 20 minute here and there on either side of that nap.  He gets in bed at the same time every night now, which is nice.  Just shortly after the others go to bed.  I think it helps him to see everyone else go to bed as the house goes dim.  He doesn't fight it like he did.  He cries, sometimes, but not often and doesn't hit and scratch like he was in the beginning.  You could definitely tell the first two weeks or so were full-on grieving.  When he was tired, I think that's when he missed his foster mother most.  I heard him say omma over the weekend.  Omma is mother in Korean.  I wasn't sure if he was saying it to me or not until we went to visit grandma's daycare.  She had him and he reached for me and was repeating it.  He finally called me omma.  The girls never did, but coming home 3 months younger they were barely even saying it in Korea.  He was already saying a couple of things.  I've heard him says mama from time-to-time too.  That's not me.  It means eat!  He doesn't say that any longer, you just have to read his mind when he's hungry.  :)  He's sort of picky, but for the most part likes orange veggies.  We're moving onto solids as soon as the baby food is gone.  He wants what's on our plates anyways, so we've been trialing some things here and there.

He really has become a huggy boy.  If I pick him up and put him against my shoulders, he hugs me and then sits there and plays with my hair very sweetly.  He likes to lean his face to mine or lay his face to my lips while I give him little butterfly kisses on his cheek.  He's become very cuddly, which was definitely not the boy I came home with.  He pushed to get down and roam.  Really didn't want held too often.  I thought he was just busy at 9 months and crawling, but held him a lot anyways and now he likes to be held.  I think he's really beginning to trust.  Now we just have to keep building and keep that trust.  He still wakes a couple of times a night, maybe more.  It's usually not too bad.  Usually you just have to go put paci in and he nods back off.  This morning he was AWAKE at 4:30.  Wah, that was rough.  Hopefully, tomorrow is better.  But, I've been working on his schedule.  We're trying to get more on a schedule that will work when I return to work.  So he's not used to me getting him up by 7 am.  That may have thrown him yesterday.  We'll see, I guess.

Anyways, that's my little man for now.

Lisa

All together now

I took pictures of them all the day Chelsi arrived, but was just so tired after we got home from Korea with Jaemin I didn't get around to it until yesterday.  Here are the 5 together.  So cute!

We're home and doing well

Between just not having time to post and just not choosing to out of exhaustion I haven't done what I haven't had to in the last week.  We're all starting to catch up now and it feels much better.  The last two nights have been much better.  Jaemin grieved pretty heavily each time he got tired, day or night, since I picked him up.  He pushed away, thrashed around, you name it he didn't want us.  Brian decided we needed to really try a pacifier to help him through just a little, not to mention the fact that his first tooth just broke through Saturday and he also hurts.  We took him to the doctor Monday for a check up and to make sure nothing else was going on that we needed to know about.  He checked out fine, so it really was just grief and teething.

Since we got him to take the paci and attach to his snuggly he's been great!  He sleeps from about 8 or 9 to about 8 the next day with a couple of wakings in between.  They're very short lived the last couple of nights though.  Either we can put the paci back in and rub his back or give him a quick bottle and he goes right back to sleep.  Even the nap today got easier.  I just sat on the floor and held him and he went right to sleep.  He actually let me rock him like a baby which he's not let me do until now.  He's a HUGE cuddler!  He loves to give hugs and kisses and tells everyone bye-bye by waving.  He's extremely smart...we can see that already!  If daddy's playing with him so I can do something and they come to visit me he gets so excited!  He definitely has attached to mommy!  I'm seriously enjoying this little man!

The trip from Korea was rough.  It's a 15 hour flight with an infant, plus customs, immigration and layovers.  I promise, it's pretty rough.  He did great the first few hours of the 12 hour flight from Seoul to Chicago and then he hated sitting still.  The stewardesses on Korean Air took him for many walks since it was hard for me to get out with the basinett in front of me.  They kept telling me he was crying because he couldn't understand me, but if they quit walking he cried for them too.  :)  They were truly very nice.  It's a wonderful airline to fly.  We only had a 2 hour layover in Chicago, so we literally got through customs and immigration and ticketing just in time to catch the next flight.  He slept on the flight home, but it was only 1 hour.  We met with the entire family and a friend of ours met us at the airport too.  It was so great to be home!  Chelsi and Chase ran to each other, once she woke up.  The boys were so happy to have her back!  Jaemin didn't care for the carseat too much, but I sat next to him and he calmed right down and fell asleep.

Since we've been home, Cole's been dying to hold his brother.  He's still off limits to everyone except daddy and I though.  Shortly, we'll let Cole hold him some, but if he throws a fit I don't think Cole could hold onto him because Jaemin's so strong.  So we'll have to be careful with that.  Kaelin and Chase pretty much stick together as usual and do their own thing.  Chelsi was pretty loud and seemed jealous at first, but has gotten to where she loves to gently kiss her brother and give him small hugs.  He's almost as big as her for goodness sakes!

That's about it for now.  We're all doing great, catching up on sleep and finding our new normal with 7 people in a smallish house.  It's all good though!  :)

Lisa



Here are some of the kids finally getting to swim!