I've been back in Seoul for a little over a week and I still feel like Christmas vacation just FLEW right on by! I am so thankful that I was able to make a trip back to the States to spend time with my family and be a part of Erin and John's New Year's Eve wedding. So, here's a quick recap of my trip home...and a few thoughts about what I'd like to accomplish in 2011.
Luckily, the flight back to the States went off without a hitch. It was such a blessing to have travel companions--Hillary and the Zimmer family trekked all the way back to Portland on the same flights and we were all thankful to make our super tight connection in Vancouver, BC. Although I was in Oregon for two and a half weeks, my body never did adjust to Pacific time again, so I had a lot of late nights and late mornings (not such a problem when you're on vacation I suppose!). The first week home was spent catching up with friends and shopping for clothes and shoes (a definite necessity when you live in a country where the average shoe size for women is 6 and Western clothing sizes are a tough find). Christmas came and went, and although our Christmas day celebration was simplified at the last minute, it turned out to be a very low key sort of day spent hanging out with my family--just the kind of thing I like. The day after Christmas saw us hitting the road for Grandpa's house in Eugene, Oregon. It was a super fast trip--just one night, but it was great to get a chance to visit with gramps, my aunt and uncle, and our family friend Patti, who we refer to as an auntie too! I should have scanned snapshots from the visit to post soon!
The week after Christmas, preparations for Erin's wedding were in full swing. We kicked off the festivities with a bridal tea at the Lavender Tea House in Sherwood, Oregon. It was a lovely afternoon spent with friends and celebrating Erin and her upcoming nuptuals.
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| Erin, the bride to be! |
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| Me, mom, and Alice (the MOB) |
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| Me and Diana (a friend from high school) |
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| Delicious tea treats |
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| The group of us at the Lavender Tea House--mom, Diana, me, Kim, Alice, Peri, Elissa, Brynn, Erin, and Betsy |
The next day all of the bridesmaids gathered for pre-wedding pampering (mani's and pedi's) and the families of the bride and groom came together for the wedding rehearsal and dinner.
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The bridesmaids and bride getting pampered.
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| Me at the rehearsal dinner. |
Before we knew it, New Year's Eve was upon us and we had so much to do to get ready for the evening wedding. All of us girls had our hair and makeup professionally done (who doesn't love a little beauty enhancement?!), put on our dresses (it was a bit of an adventure getting Erin into hers), and were ready to walk down the aisle.
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| Erin with hair and makeup wedding ready! |
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| Carefully helping Erin into her dress. |
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| Chihiro (Erin's friend from college) and Takuto |
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| Dad and Mom looking snazzy. |
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| Mom and me |
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| Erin, me, and Diana at the reception |
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| Getting ready to ring in the new year with our super cool hats |
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| Oh wait, there are more of us! |
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| Kentaro and Chihiro who came all the way from Tokyo! |
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| Me and my bestie, the beautiful bride! |
Although the wedding was over, I still had several things to cram into my last few days in town. On the day after New Year's, mom and I headed to the In Good Taste cooking school in Lake Oswego for a hands on class that taught us to make Italian gnocchi. This was the first experience taking a cooking class for both of us and we had a blast! I learned so many new techniques and we took part in creating a delicious meal that was shared with the 12 other participants. I will definitely be looking into taking several more cooking classes in the near future!
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The chefs putting the finishing touches on our gnocchi dishes
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Ricotta gnocchi waiting to be cooked
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Lots and lots of delicious gnocchi
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| The spinach gnocchi that mom and I worked on. |
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Four types of gnocchi--heaven on a plate!
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My time in Oregon came to a close far too quickly and on January 5th I got back on a plane bound for Seoul. The journey back to Korea took something like 30 hours and I arrived back in Yonhi Dong exhausted with a splitting headache and ready for bed. Life in Seoul picked up right where it left off with a trip to Costco, laundry, planning for school, and hanging out with the girls.
Before the weekend ended I thought it was important to sit down and think about what I'd like to accomplish in 2011. While I usually make my goals for the new year at the start of each new school year, I recognized that there were some big areas in my life screaming for attention! Rather than make a laundry list of goals, I decided to focus my resolutions on four key areas and work on implementing changes in each area over a three month period. In January, February, and March I'm going to work on my physical health. Since the move to Korea I haven't been paying enough attention to what my body is telling me, so these changes are long overdue. My plan is to eat better (back to meal planning and weekly shopping), exercising at least three times a week, and getting more sleep (bedtime at 10 rather than midnight). I know it is going to take some time for my body to respond, but I'm hoping to start feeling better soon! |
April, May, and June I'll be focusing on spiritual health. While I definitely feel much more connected to God here because of the nature of the environment, I haven't been actively searching for a church or devoting time regularly to connecting with God. I'm hoping to begin my search for a church sooner, but I want to be sure I explore several different options and choose the place that will meet my spiritual needs and provide opportunities for small group study, etc.
In July, August, and September I'll be working on my finances and world travel plans. Before I leave Korea I am determined to pay off my student loans and save enough money to pursue teaching in Europe (if I choose to remain abroad) or purchasing a place to live (if I return to the States). I also want to continue exploring the world, so it is important to me to make sure I have the resources set aside for lots of new adventures!!
The last three months of this year I'll be working on growing my social circle in Seoul. I absolutely LOVE the people I work and live with at Seoul Foreign School, but I also believe it is important to meet other people, foreigners or not, who live in this fabulous city too! I guess I could also mention my hope that I'll find a lovely man to share my life's adventures with...but I'm not rushing into anything here:).
So far 2011 is off to a good start and we're about to say good-bye to the first semester of the school year. Time flies, doesn't it?! With the second semester comes new curriculum to teach (chemistry, yay!), more opportunities to bond with my colleagues and students, and more time to explore my fabulous new home. Although I desperately miss my family and friends, I am starting to find myself a part of a new family here at SFS. Last night we celebrated homecoming in the high school and I joined some of my favorite single ladies in supporting our students at the basketball games. Afterward, we headed down the hill for a quick trip to the grocery store, which turned into an adventure of its own. We ended the evening at Pizza School where we chatted and scarfed down the most delicious pizza ever (sweet potato pizza and cheese pizza with corn, YUM!). Oh pizza, how I have missed you! As the things I once thought were novel become more mundane, I am always surprised that there seems to be another adventure waiting for me just around the corner. With this in mind, I welcome another new year and the hope and promise it brings! Merry New Year everyone--I pray 2011 is filled with much joy and many blessings!
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