My sister, Denise, made plans to come this week thinking that it was before my due date so that she could either enjoy my last stages of pregnancy with me... or meet Marc if he came early... I think she was hoping for both to happen during her week long visit. :) As we know, Marc decided to surprise us all and come really early - so "Aunt Neesie" came to meet her nephew, bearing lots of gifts (1 and 1/2 of her two full bags were filled with stuff for Marc!!) She was all smiles from the moment she was off of the plane, ready to experience life outside of the USA for the first time! Though most of the time was spent around our apartment and neighborhood, Jarrod and I were able to take her out around Seoul. She braved the back of Jarrod's motorcycle (he is a safe driver... the driving is a little different in Korea though.. you'll have to ask one of them if you want more details), and joined me in all forms of our public transportation (taxi, bus, and subway) for some sight-seeing, shopping, and Korean food experiences. :) Here are pictures of us sharing someof my favorite meals with Denise, Kalbi & Mandu!
We also were able to visit the largest palace in Seoul, Geongbokgung, and see the changing of the guard ceremony (shown above), visit Seoul tower for Denise to get a good view of the never-ending city, and show her around our school! Below is a picture of Denise standing in front on the Han River, a river that runs through the middle of Seoul, about a 5 minute walk from our house.
It was great to show her around and let her come to understand more of what it is like for us to live in Korea, but I treasured spending hours together talking, playing games, gleaning her "Mommy wisdom", and watching her love and care for Marc. He snuggled up to his Aunt Neesie and was quite content to stay there as long as she let him (well.. until he wanted to eat... :) This was such a unique and special time to share with my sister and I don't think I could say thank-you enough for all that she did! Denise ensured that I ate three quality meals each day and allowed me and Jarrod to get a lot of rest. (I had to fight her to get her to go lay down!.. she was always putting us before her own needs.) It is hard to believe that she has already come and gone - after such anticipation for her arrival. She is sorely missed, but we look forward to a sweet reunion on her side of the globe this June!
Thank-you Peter, Stephen & Scott (Denise's husband and two young children) for sacrificing time with your wife and mother to allow her to come to Korea and be with us! Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you, Denise for the incredible help and encouragement you were for both Jarrod and I, for how much you love and support us, and for coming to a new place and culture with open arms and an open heart to see and embrace things that are new and different. You are a treasure, and I thank God for making you my big sister!
PS. We want a re-match in Bananagrams! :)
2 comments:
when will your june visit be? we are looking into a visit late may/early june...
That is soo precious! I love those pictures. I'm so glad everything was even sweeter than anticipated.
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