Christmas lights

 We LOVE decorating for Christmas.  It is a family affair and everyone gets in to it! 

   The most magical part of Christmas decorating is the lights.

Every evening during this Christmas season when darkness falls and you turn to gaze at the Christmas tree, or drive by houses decorated in lights, may your heart remember and delight in the One who gives light to the World.

"You, Lord, are my lamp;
    the Lord turns my darkness into light."

2 Samuel 22:29

Something to be thankful for!

Enter His gates with thanksgiving, And His courts with praise. 

Give thanks to Him; bless His name.

Psalm 100:4

This year we celebrated Thanksgiving with another (large!) family that works at YISS.  They were some of the first people we met in Seoul, and honestly - I can't imagine being here without them around!  It was fun to host the meal, have lots of kids running around, and share holiday traditions.

Gingerbread (graham cracker!) houses!

During this holiday season, we definitely miss our family and friends back in the States.  However, one of the joys of Thanksgiving is to take a step back and look at all you have to be thankful for.  Harry Ironside once said, "We would worry less if we praised more.  Thanksgiving is the enemy of discontent and dissatisfaction."  How true that is!  And we have SO MUCH to be thankful for:  good health, a good job, great friends, and the ability to stay connected with loved ones on the other side of the world!   Most importantly, we praise God for His saving grace, for His kingdom work around the world, and for His plan to use His people for His good purpose.   Give Thanks to the Lord, all the earth!

Thanksgiving!

May you be surrounded by love this day as you give thanks for all the good gifts given to you by our Father above.  May you smile together with family and friends as you fill your plate with delicious foods... like turkey... stuffing... sweet potatoes... cranberries... pumpkin pie...

Or in our case, Apple Cinnamon Puffs.

Happy Thanksgiving from Korea!

a little cooperation, please.

When I pull out the camera to capture something really cute that Marc was doing... he would to turn away, frown, or simply not acknowledge me... and so we have a lot of pictures like this:

Or I am desperate to get a good picture of him... and end up making weird noises, shaking anything I can find, and jumping up and down to get him to look and laugh... and then the picture ends up blurry (and most often deleted).  

Someone please tell me I am not the only one making a fool of myself to get good pictures of my kiddos!

Emmalyn, on the other hand...  I pull out the camera and say her name and she starts smiling.  

No embarrassing tactics needed.  Thank-you. 

I let the flash blink at her and she give a really cheesy grin.

 I LOVE IT.  You can't help but smile when you see these pictures!

Now that Marc is older, he notices that Emmalyn gets WAY more pictures taken of him... 

so he is starting to cooperate.  

However, he will say "CHEEEEEEEEEEESE" and end up with a really awkward smile/facial expression. But at least he is looking.  Silly boy.

The trick to getting decent pictures of your kids - whether they cooperate or not - is to take millions (or 20,000 since Marc was born) of pictures and you end up with no space on your computer and at least one good photo that you are pleased to share.

Now why is it SO HARD to delete the thousands of "bad" pictures??? Perhaps because I want to remember those moments, too.

11.11.12

 Happy 10 months to our sweet baby girl!

 This 10 month mark lands on Peppero Day in Korea... So Jarrod, Marc, and I all enjoyed Peppero sticks in honor of Emmalyn. ;)  Perhaps next year, Emma, you will get to try them, too.

Always in a good mood. 

 4 teeth!

This girl is FULL of personality. :)

"Buzz Lightyear, to Infinity and Beyond!"

This October, we enjoyed two Harvest parties - with our church and with playgroup - both of which Marc dressed up as Buzz Lightyear from his favorite movie, Toy Story (1, 2, or 3.. he likes them all).

 It was so fun putting on his Buzz costume for the first time just before heading to the first party last Saturday.  He was so excited to see himself as "Buzzyear".  He was even more tickled when we started referring to him as "Buzz".

He had a great time playing with his friends - "chingus" at the parties!

AND then he donned his home-made jet pack (thank-you Pinterest for the idea!)... which impressed lots of parents and all of the other kids that got to try it on and see how fast they could run with it. ;)

Even better, the jet-pack has (removable) wings!

Daddy assisted Buzz flying through the room during a costume parade. :) 

What good are wings and a jetpack if you can't use them?

Marc even got to experience knocking on doors... and saying "Candy, please!"... which often just turned in to his shy smile and signing "please" on his chest. He was definitely pleased with the results though. :)

After these two "costume parties", as Marc calls them,  Marc has been running around saying "Buzz Lightyear, to infinity - beyond!" as fast as he can and shooting his fist in the air.  It is so cute.

And the best news for little Buzz?
The costume is really PAJAMAS that we strategically hid from him all these months in his drawer. ;)
He gets to dress up every night!

OH..

BUZZ's little sister - the ballerina - also made an appearance:

Look at her pointing her toes already!