Traditions

Moon's Fathers grave with a classic Oreom (parasitic volcano) in the background

The month of September marks the end of the summer around here and the transition to fall and winter activities. An annual tradition for most families on the island is the maintenance of the graves. These graves are simple mounds scattered everywhere and anywhere you might look in the country. For most of the summer these mounds become overgrown with ferns and grass and become almost invisible. Of course everyone knows where their family member's graves are and weed whackers and scythes come out in force to trim them down so they look like nicely manicured plots. Some folks have stone walls surrounding their graves and some even have headstones or fancy marble structures. Often they are grouped together in fields or in a space that resembles a cemetery.

After a small hike Moon's family starts the clearing process. (yours truly lazing behind the camera of course)

After the hardwork there is a small ceremony to honor her father and then we eat a well deserved meal.


Here we are at the end of the hardworking day posing on the nicely trimmed mound.

Fun...

Hey! Long time no see...It has been a busy Month both here and at home and posting to the blog has become a low priority. Sorry about that. As many of you know my parents were in a pretty severe car accident. They were pretty shaken up and suffering from a variety of injuries but are doing much better now. Thanks to everyone who kept them in their thoughts and prayers. We felt pretty helpless on this side of the ocean since we couldn't be there to offer physical support but we did what we could.

For now I am just going to post some older pics we took back in August. Joon has been turning into a little man which is awesome to watch. We will have a new singing video up soon. For now, Enjoy!

Here is Joon working on his first pizza dough. He was pretty excited about the whole process especially since cheese was involved!

Here are some pictures from our second camping trip to the beach. ( smudges compliments of Joon's fingers!)

Fun in the sand!

And this gem is our first attempt at clamming which was a minimal success. Once we figured out we didn't need to dig so deep we were too tired to try much longer. Still we had a nice soup with our catch.

More to come! Hope all is well...

Family camping

We decided to buy a tent recently and it was a great idea. Joon probably remembers car camping up the alcan and had no propblem adjusting to the tent lifestyle. Camping in korea is not a go it alone experience and that is not necessarily a bad thing. People take their tents and gear seriously even if only a few hundred yards from their cars.

Here you can see what we think of as a massive tent compared to our old two person (one with gear) bike tent. No regrets however, we enjoyed the space and I certainly like being able to almost stand upright inside.

Here is Joon getting ready for bed despite it being only 4 in the afternoon.

This last picture is for grandma and grandpa to show off his latest outfit from the states. Of course he is stylin' and ready for the beach.

Birds of a different feather...

First a little update of our Swallow family. We counted about four babies and here they are ready to fly away. We were fortunate to be home last Saturday evening when they took their first flight. There was a lot of chatter as they figured out they could get out of their overcrowded nest. I think momma was ready to push them out if they didn't figure it out on their own!

Onto our new addition of chickens. When My folks were here my dad and I took the time to build a coop out of random wood laying around the house. It was not finished by the time they left but with a litlle scavenging I was able to locate some roofing material and close the deal. We bought two chickens at the five day market (local farmer's market) and tested things out. Here is Joon looking pretty excited about it all

With More scavenging for dead trees and a lot of netting it was time to build a small yard for the chickens to run around in during the day.

They seem happy to peck around and settle in. A little late to be hoping for eggs but we will see. Of course one chicken decided to fly out. A chase around the mandrin fields ensued and wings had to be clipped. otherwise, so far so good!

Fun Times in the summer

Here is a little experiment in collages. i promise they will get better if i keep working on it. Anyway, we have been hitting the beaches, watching the garden explode and enjoying the Swallows and their growing family. Joon is changing dramatically everyday, playing with his dolls, fascinations with trucks, tractors and Choo Choo trains, talking and even singing his ABC's. Hard to believe but it is happening... It is way cool to watch. Hope everyone is having fun! .

Where were you.....

When you heard that Micheal Jackson had died?

Warm Weather and the Wild life....

As summer progresses the temps quickly rise and suddenly it feels like we are in a tropical zone. Soon after the parents left there was an increase of wildlife around the house. With Joon dropping grapes and sweet things all over the place ie...under couches and refirdgerators we had an overnight ant invasion. Very different from the small colonies of ants in Seattle or Alaska. These suckers are numerous and voracious. Of course it has forced us to clean the house which is probably a good thing.

Here is a shot of a swallow who has decided to live above our screen door. Occasionally they fly in the house but fly out with no problems. I have since put up a piece of styrofoam as a platform and poop guard. Seems to be working for now...

Also with the wamer temps we are able to have nice outdoor dinners and Joon can crack open his first beer(?) Don't remember that happening...

and fun days at the beach. Here is Joon trying his new Thomas floaty. Joon looks like he is having fun and dad looks like he is taking a crap...oh well, you can't always make everybody look good in a picture. Hope every one else is having fun out there during Joon, I mean June. They say it will get warmer. Having lived in the far north for so long I have a hard time imagining. Party on for now...