Monday, October 25, 2010

18 Months


Here's our little man after he had a spray bottle war with himself (one of his favorite pastimes). It's hard to tell from the photo, but his shirt is ABSOLUTELY SOAKED!!! He doesn't much care for drinking water, but this is one way I can trick him into rehydrating... give him a spray bottle. He'll drink most of it by spraying it in his mouth and the rest ends up on his shirt. 


He also loves throwing balls. He walks around with a tennis ball in hand nearly every waking hour. He hasn't learned to catch yet, but he is VERY good at throwing. In anticipation of his throw he'll say, "Ahhhhh...." and then when he releases, he says "Dee!!". He is OBSESSED with putting small objects in bags, or a box. He especially likes boxes with slits on the top. He's gotten quite good at stacking blocks and when he gets one to balance, he applauds himself every time. He also applauds himself every time he throws something. Maybe I give him a little too much positive reinforcement.


It is a struggle to keep Lincoln's hair under control. He starts out the day with an orderly hairdo (as seen below), but after the first nap, it looks like the picture shown above. He was very upset with me when I took that picture because he wanted to snuggle for a minute before really waking up. My favorite thing is to snuggle with him before he goes to sleep and for a BRIEF moment after he wakes up. When I go to put him in his crib to go to sleep, he knows that I'm going to kiss him, so he'll smack his lips multiple times in anticipation. He's been very liberal with his hugs and kisses lately and it makes Matt and me melt.


Lincoln loves to read. If I'm ever sitting on the floor, he'll run go find a book and then come over to me, turn around and back up into my lap so we can read it. He loves thumbing through books himself. A few days ago, after I got him out of his crib, I had to run do something with Bennett. When I came back to his room, I found him chillin' in the recliner with the book we read the previous night. He can't get in the recliner by himself unless he flips the footrest up. Then the recliner stays still while he hoists himself up in it. Pretty cute.


He has become a burp master. He totally pushes them out. Not sure if it was Auntie L or Matt that taught him that behind my back.

He HATES it if his hands are covered by his long sleeves. He'll pull his shirt almost completely off if I don't pull his hands out.

He has gotten to be A LOT more verbal even in this last week. Words he says include:

  • Daddy
  • Mama ("Ba ba")
  • Ball ("Ba!!!")
  • Uh-oh (which he says when he makes a mistake AND when he throws things off his high chair on purpose)
  • Book ("Buh")
  • Shoe ("Jew")
  • Drink ("Digga digga digga")
  • Baby (as in baby Bennett, "Di di")
  • Jesus ("Je da" or "Di di")
  • Get down ("Di da")
  • Gukgoo (which is "Peek-a-boo" in Korean)
  • Hi ("I")
  • Yeah
  • Yay
He's not super consistent with the use of words, but he's been trying a lot more to repeat things I say. I shower him with praise for any effort even if it's not even close to the actual word. He's catching on, though. He has lot's of other ways of communicating, like saying "Uh, uh, uh!!" while pointing at something he wants. He'll point to the cupboard where we keep bread, cookies, crackers, etc when he wants a snack. He also puts his hands out to the side and shrugs his shoulders (as seen below) when he's "All done" eating, or being in his car seat or stroller. We've been working on the alphabet and he can say "O", "E", "I", "T" and "S".



He has started nursery. It's Korean-style nursery, so that means he must take his shoes off before going in the nursery room. That also means that he may end up in with the Young Women, Primary or anywhere else in the church building or perhaps even outside in the parking lot. I'm trying to learn not to be too over-protective cause Koreans just let the ward watch their kids, whoever that might be. I did hear him near the kitchen where they were boiling water in a pot on the floor to make rice for a linger-longer. I couldn't take the thought of him being scalded so I went out of RS and found that he was just playing outside in the rain screaming in delight while the nursery leader was helping make the food. He was just about to sit down in a puddle when I got to him. At least puddles don't do any lasting damage. He loves nursery and doesn't even look back once when he goes in.  


You could tell he had a good time at nursery by the looks of his shirt afterward. The nursery leader gave me a "Choco Pie" after church for him to eat later. She said he liked them a lot and that he had already had two. She also apologized to Matt and said that Lincoln had eaten some crayon. He's eaten black Playdough on my watch so whatever. 


Last, but not least are his stats:

Weight: 26 lbs 4 oz (50th Percentile)
Height: 31.5 inches (25th Percentile)



Thursday, October 21, 2010

One More


Here's one more photo that should have been with his 3 month post. What a cute little stink.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

To All the Moms Out There

I'm gonna be honest. Sometimes I resent that it's my job to take care of the kids 24/7. It's exhausting and thankless much of the time. Sometimes (actually a lot of the time) I resent that it's my job to think of meals to make, buy the food, cook the food, and then clean-up too when Matt is busy studying for the LSAT or whatever. Sometimes I resent that it's my job to do all the laundry and attempt to keep the house clean. I don't mind any these tasks at all in moderation, but they don't come in moderation. They are constant. Frustration peaks at times like yesterday when I was trying to get out of the house to go meet a friend. I was gonna be right on time and at the last minute when I was just about to load Lincoln in the stroller with Bennett, Lincoln spilled his milk all over everything. After mopping all that up, I caught a whiff of something. Lincoln had pooped AGAIN right after I had already changed his diaper. Seriously? AHHH!!! Can't I ever be on time?

Anyway, this morning, I read the talk by Elder D. Todd Christofferson, "Reflections on a Consecrated Life". There was one paragraph in particular that spoke to me. 

"God has designed this mortal existence to require nearly constant exertion. I recall the Prophet Joseph Smith’s simple statement: “By continuous labor [we] were enabled to get a comfortable maintenance” (Joseph Smith—History 1:55). By work we sustain and enrich life. It enables us to survive the disappointments and tragedies of the mortal experience. Hard-earned achievement brings a sense of self-worth. Work builds and refines character, creates beauty, and is the instrument of our service to one another and to God. A consecrated life is filled with work, sometimes repetitive, sometimes menial, sometimes unappreciated but always work that improves, orders, sustains, lifts, ministers, aspires."

When I think of my daily tasks as something that is meant to refine my character and to be the instrument of my service to God, my family and others, mopping up the milk, cleaning up the poop, staying up with a sick child, and grocery shopping don't seem so bad. In fact, it seems good... really good. So, to all you moms out there, keep on going. What you're doing does matter. In fact it matters more than anything else you could be doing.

Last, but not least, many of you, I'm sure, have already seen this, but I liked it a lot. I could especially relate to the baby getting in the toilet.



3 Months


Well, this post is a little late and probably has too many pictures (as do most of my posts), but here it is. Bennett is such a little sweetheart. It is SO easy to make him smile. He loves to be held, probably because those moments are so few and far between. He is a VERY light sleeper. The slightest noise will wake him up, so you can imagine that getting him to sleep with a toddler screaming at random intervals is a challenge, to say the least. He'll cry and cry until you hold him in just the right way, for just the right amount of time, at the right temperature, and with the right noise level (i.e. silent). After he GETS to sleep, and conditions remain ideal, he sleeps well. Pretty much through the night. He holds his head up at a 90 degree angle when on his belly. He does have the rubbed off bald spot in the back. It seems he's lost a lot of hair since birth, but what he does have is still dark. He loves Lincoln and smiles the biggest at him, especially as they are facing each other in the double stroller.


The Stats:

Weight: 16 lbs (90th Percentile)
Height: 23.5" (25th Percentile)

This butterball has gone from tall and skinny to short and fat in a short three months.



He doesn't look like the alien in his passport photos (taken at one week) anymore. He's grown into his nose a little bit.


As per usual, I apologize for the scary mom voice in the background. You do what ya gotta do to make 'im smile. Here he is in action:

Monday, October 18, 2010

Korenglish

You've heard of Chinglish, and Spanglish, but how's your Korenglish? This photo was taken by my mother-in-law while visiting a little zoo with Lincoln during her trip here. It deserves a post of its own.



Sunday, October 17, 2010

When Grammy and Grampy Adsero Came to Visit

The Adsero Grandparents came to visit and this is how we passed the time. 

Hanging Around Ulsan:

Watching Disney movies with Grandpa (did a lot of that)

Deciding which chunk of meat (if any at all) to buy

Happy Chuseok (Fall Festival)!!! Here's some SPAM!!

Laila took her turn as one the Paparazzi and snapped this shot of one of the workers at the grocery store dressed in her "hanbok" in celebration of Chuseok

Watch out! They drive scooters on the sidewalk here.

Mmmm... Korean BBQ with its bazillion sick side dishes.

Sunday walk by the river


Jinha Beach and Matt's Work Site:


Jinha Beach. Wasn't the experience we all dreamed of.

This is how rice grows in case you were wondering.

The lady cop directing traffic

Matt's work site

The modules from Matt's work being loaded on a HUGE ship to be sent to Northern Canada

Close up of one of the modules

Went to Church (twice):

Church!

Ladies at church lovin' Bennett

Kids at church lovin' Bennett

3 of 4 Adsero men present hanging out after church

Aquarium in Busan:

Busan Aquarium

Lincoln was terrified of the model penguin

Gyeongju: 

Rubbing the lucky hog at the Bulguksa in Gyeongju

Rice field in late September... getting yellow and almost ready to harvest

Rice field in early August. Much greener eh?

I dragged everyone all around Gyeongju in the rain. Here they are pretending to be happy about it. 

Lotus flowers in Gyeongju. .Lotus flowers are significant in Buddhist culture. They represent purity of the body, speech and mind. We are to rise above attachment (to worldly things) and desire as the lotus rises above the muddy waters from which it grows.

The King and Queen of Gyeongju (and the Adsero's in the background)

Bulguksa

Laila was impacted enough by her experience using a "squatter" that she thought it was picture worthy. Note to self: remember to grab some TP from the master roll OUTSIDE the stall before going in!


Geoje Island:

Lucy and Richard staring off into the distance on Geoje Island

The last we saw of Matt and Lucy before they got lost for an hour or so

Laila showing off her hot grandma legs!

Pretty, huh?

A big ball of styrofoam with muscles and barnacles growing on it


Matt and my 30 minute date on the beach

Matt looks photo-shopped in, but he's not. Just an ugly flash on a pretty beach.

Me doing what I do best on vacay... taking pictures!

Us on "Wind Hill" with our friends JP, Julie, Mingyu, Kevin, Cathy and their kids Kaylie and Kayla

The one luxury at the "pension" we stayed at. If it weren't for these beauties, Laila would have thought she was camping (and starving because we were unwilling to eat raw fish)

Eating Bfast on the deck with JP, Julie (Bok Ray) and Mingyu


Kaylie, Kayla, Cathy, JP, Julie and Mingyu

JP cooking up some great Korean BBQ for us

"Grandpa turned me into a merman, mom!"

Here's the cutest puppy of all time. Too bad we didn't catch him doing this to Lincoln. Lincoln wasn't so sure he like it.



One of Richard and Laila's many "out the car window" shots. This one will represent the thousands.


Loving Geoje Island

Hae Dong Yong Gung Temple:

Hae Dong Yong Gung Temple pagoda dealie

Lincoln and his fan club

Golden Buddah

The Temple

Golden Piggies

Beautiful coast where the temple sat

Year of the Piggies

The 12 Chinese Zodiac Animals

Mr. Pizza Etang himself

Pizza delivery boy on his scooter

Pine Forrest and Ilsan Beach:







Seoknamsa Temple and the Petroglyphs:




"Now where are those petroglyphs??" (This photo represents the thousands of bummer shots taken of me  by Laila that were not posted for obvious reasons)

The ugliest dog of all time


Ulsan Grand Park:


Getting dizzy with Grandpa and loving every second of it

"Weeeee!!!"

"Don't make me do it!"


"Um... that cow is really big, Grandpa"
We had a great time and had a mild case of depression after they left, but luckily we'll be seeing them again soon! Thanks for coming to visit, Grandma and Grandpa!